Council leader John Cotton apologizes for budget cuts and a council tax hike amid Birmingham’s financial struggles.
Cuts total over £148 million and council tax will rise 7.49%. Job losses are coming, too as Cotton acknowledged a very challenging year while pledging to fix things soon. He regretted rising council tax again, which is above the normal limit this year, promising it won’t happen again.
Opposition leaders weren’t buying it. Robert Alden criticized higher taxes and fewer services. Roger Harmer found many failures avoidable and said Labour can’t run things well, claiming internal issues distract them. He credited officials and supervisors for progress.
Problems include Perry Barr Games Village losses, and the Oracle IT system cost a lot to fix. Equal pay claims are over £250 million. They used reserves to balance budgets and must sell assets to raise a billion.
Cotton focused on positive aspects though, stating recovery is happening fast now and he feels lessons were learned. The budget shows the right direction. He said the council will protect vulnerable people.
They’ll use council tax support and more aid. He highlighted work to transform the council and mentioned youth services and libraries.
Bin workers protested ahead of the meeting. Cotton wants to resolve the bin dispute. He noted past failed attempts to fix waste services, saying changes caused the current dispute.
He painted a positive picture of the future, stating Birmingham has economic opportunity and growth opportunities. Projects will create jobs and homes.
Last year had huge cuts, plus a tax rise, all that followed the bankruptcy declaration. This year brings more cuts to services.
Bin collections change to every two weeks, and they will close some day centers. Parking fees start at three parks, and arts funding will be completely cut.