CASH-strapped Worcestershire County Council chiefs have revealed they still need to find savings of £58million over the next two years- and haven’t ruled out a council tax rise to help plug the gap.
County Hall chiefs say they still have a £2.9 million hole to deal with before the draft budget is published in December.
A further £29 million must also be saved in both 2018/19, and a further £25 million in 2019/20.
Details of the further cuts emerged at a briefing at County Hall on Friday (November 11) where the Conservative leader of the council, Councillor Simon Geraghty, claimed tough decisions had already been made and the fresh proposals were about better use of council assets and growing its income, rather than ‘traditional cuts.’
These include further efforts to reduce council tax fraud and error, renegotiating contracts with private contractors, cutting spending on waste disposal and better use of the council’s buildings.
“We’ve done a lot of work and have a lot more to do, but we think we’ve got a programme of genuine reform,” said Coun Geraghty.
“When we’re talking about these proposals they are about extra income, better use of our assets and doing things differently, that yes save money, but actually have a better outcome.
“What they’re not about is straight forward frontline reductions that will be noticeable to the public.”
However he refused to rule out a rise in council tax for 2017/18 and said he wouldn’t know until the draft budget is finalised but admitted the idea was ‘open for discussion’.
