Wiltshire Council tax and fees to be frozen in new budget (From Wiltshire Times)

Wiltshire Council tax and fees to be frozen in new budget

7:00pm Friday 10th February 2012 in Latest News By Mike Wilkinson, Senior Reporter

Balancing the council’s books will be an easier task this year, Wiltshire Council leader Jane Scott has declared.

A saving of £32.6m will need to be made in the next financial year, which is a drop in the ocean compared with last year’s severe cuts passed down from the Government.

Council tax will be frozen for another year and fees, such as for swimming and other council-run leisure centre activities, will remain the same.

Meanwhile, millions of pounds will be invested by the council in protecting Wiltshire’s most vulnerable adults and children.

Cllr Scott said: “I am pleased with the way it looks because, yes, we have had to make some priorities, but we are investing in some key frontline services and we are not having to take the tough decisions that some other councils are having to make right now.

“We have spent a lot of time looking at our priorities and it is fair to say that this year hasn’t been as difficult, because we have been building on the extensive work that was done last year to make a sound business plan for the next four years.”

Youth centres and libraries will remain open, despite cutbacks, but council buildings such as Bradley Road, in Trowbridge, and Browfort, in Devizes, will be put up for sale sooner than had been anticipated, to raise the millions needed.

The budget plans will be discussed by the council’s cabinet when it meets in Salisbury on Wednesday.

A final decision is due to be made by the full council on February 28, when it meets at 10.30am in Trowbridge Civic Centre.

The council’s chief finance officer, Michael Hudson, said: “The freeze in council tax again this year will be good news. Wiltshire has one of the lowest council tax rates in the country.”

There was also some bad news. Capital funding for Wiltshire’s schools was cut by £3m by the Government and Wiltshire Council will make more redundancies.

Local authorities are not out of the woods yet, with Cllr Scott predicting a tough year beyond 2012.

Higher than expected inflation, the rising cost of care for older people and uncertainty over Government funding could all lead to a fresh headache for the council’s financial planners.

She said: “Looking forward, it is not going to get any better. The next year beyond this will be a bit of a leap in to the unknown.”