THE Green Party group at Somerset Council is calling on the government to allocate more funds to the council so it can keep on top of the services it maintains in the county.
In a joint statement by cllr Martin Dimery, cllr Dave Mansell, cllr Helen Kay, cllr Michael Dunk and cllr Shane Collins, the Greens say that Somerset Council has been faced with 13 years of “draconian cuts” in funding from central government.
The statement reads, “It is little surprise that Somerset Council is now facing a desperate and deepening financial crisis, with a real possibility of soon going bust. To begin with, the formula used for central government funding of councils is long out of date and needs completely overhauling.
“Somerset has a large population of over 580,000 people spread across a wide geographical area. It has a larger than average number of retired people, putting a strain on the adult services budget. Children’s services have the additional demands of maintaining rural schools and providing transport for those who travel substantial distances to schools and colleges. These two services account for two-thirds of the council’s revenue budget. In addition, Somerset manages an enormous network of rural highways.
“Over the last 13 years of Conservative government, Somerset’s previous county and district councils have faced draconian cuts in funding from central government. With restrictive regulations on how much the council tax can be increased, the former county council has previously embarked on a succession of ‘savings’ in recent years, creating ever more pressure on staff and resources.
“Inevitably, a blame game has begun. The Liberal Democrats point out that under previous Conservative administrations, Somerset County Council chose to freeze council taxes rather than acknowledging the long-term pressures. The Tories point to the current Liberal Democrat executive having ‘lost opportunities’ presented by the abolition of district councils and the creation of unitary.
“The truth is that local councils have borne the brunt of 13 years of the Conservative government’s obsession with austerity. Furthermore, it should not be forgotten that the Liberal Democrats were complicit in promoting this policy when in Cameron’s coalition. Neither can the Liberal Democrats escape the fact that, under their control, some district councils made some ill-advised investments, now the responsibility of the new unitary council.
“The result is that we are now seeing Somerset Council desperately seeking to off-load properties and asking parish and town councils to relieve them of essential services like street cleaning.
“All of this amounts to ‘a quick fix’ in the desperate hope of staving off the Section 114 ‘bankruptcy’ order. The longer-term solution to what is becoming a national crisis is to follow the Green Party policy of placing higher taxes on those who can most afford it: the oil companies, the banks, the off-shore investors and those who grow increasingly rich while ordinary people struggle.
“Our public services are on the point of collapse. Austerity is not the solution. There is nothing left to cut. The central government which encouraged Somerset to become a single council, now needs to step in with extra resources to enable Somerset not to fail at the first hurdle.”
