Council’s books aren’t balanced
Claims by the Labour leadership in Corby that Corby Council has balanced its books (Evening Telegraph, Friday, February 3) are utterly ludicrous.
The reports presented to the One Corby Policy Committee on Tuesday, February 7, show that the authority, which is already £47.4m in debt, is now proposing to borrow a further £71m with a potential cost to the Corby taxpayer in interest payments of £2.3m, while interest payments on the Corby Cube overspend alone cost the borough £175,000 each year.
Meanwhile, Corby’s overspent and over-borrowed council will be cutting £1.6m from local services and shedding up to 12 jobs, all while councillors continue to receive allowances totalling about £175,000 per annum and £1.5m will be set aside just to service the council’s debt.
The council’s suggestion that it has avoided cutting frontline services would be admirable were it correct.
Sadly, when you look beneath the spin and the smoke and mirror tricks, the true extent of the cuts at Corby’s financially discredited local authority become apparent.
In the 2012-13 financial year, Corby Council will be cutting its number of safer community wardens by 33 per cent, reducing funding to the Core theatre by £53,000, scaling back the availability of the Happenin’ Project Play Scheme, and it is even proposing to close the One Stop Shop service one day per week.
In the wake of the Kingswood housing scandal, it is not surprising that people are sceptical about Corby Council’s financial competence, but with yet more complacency over the state of the authority’s budget, when it comes to running our council it is unlikely that the people of Corby will ever trust Labour again.
Cllr David Sims
Cllr Rob McKellar
Cllr Stan Heggs
Cllr Ray Lilley
Corby Council Conservative Group
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Thursday 24 May 2012
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Comments
There are 3 comments to this article
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Subcomandante
Wednesday, February 15, 2012 at 05:05 PMI see the wealth of comments on here show the Tories have their finger on the pulse. Looks like no-one believes this LabourOut. (PS, were you on the pop when you posted your message too lol!)
Ray Rodden
Tuesday, February 14, 2012 at 08:51 AM@labourout seems someone from the labour party must have stolen your favourite toy as a baby, judging by you continuing rants ahhh didums ;-)
LabourOut
Saturday, February 11, 2012 at 11:00 PMQuit right councillors. So Labour have stripped £1.6 million out of the budget. What exactly was that money doing? They try and say it won't affect front line services. If so why didn't they remove it the year before and then use that money to improve frontline services. They cannot have it both ways. The Safer community wardens do a great job cleaning our streets and as their name says keeping us safe. Corby labour reduce the Safer Community Warden numbers then criticise Northants County Council over PCSO budgets to deflect attention, they play political games with people's lives in Corby. Corby are not fit to empty the buckets catching the rain coming through the Cubes roof.
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