Residents in Basildon will be hit with a three per cent rise in their council tax, as well as increases to fees and charges at leisure centres and council-owned car parking. Basildon Council will increase costs at leisure centres, other services, and parking by five per cent in its latest budget. The authority hopes the increases will bring in an additional £350,000.
Gavin Callaghan, the council’s Labour leader, says, “It’s not something I like to do” and insists, “We are hindered by what the last government left us with; local government finance is broken.”
Councillor Callaghan said: “The bin system brought in by the Tories overspent by £2.3million, it needs more crews and vehicles and fuel. That’s a problem and I’ve been really crystal clear we are going back to weekly black bin collections and that’s starting in April. The Government had been very helpful and given Basildon Council a grant of about £3million for the next financial year to help with temporary accommodation, that is very helpful but there are other pressures, we need to save around £5million.
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“There will be a rise in council tax at three per cent; it’s not something I like to do; I think Essex County Council is raising council tax too. When I was last in power the rules from the Government meant we could do more with commercial acquisition and making money from it, we were able to bring in more money, now we’re hindered and have not got the leavers we used to have and it puts more burden on the tax payer.
“Fees and charges will be rising too, and it will be things like leisure centre fees, and it will go up five per cent. Parking will also rise, this is the car parking areas that we own, and it will see a five per cent increase, but for some, it’s a very minimal rise. The council tax rise will bring in about £200,000, the rise in fees and charges will bring in about £150,000. The biggest investment in this budget is fixing the bins. We were told we couldn’t do it, and we have; we are spending £1.9million on it.
“The budget is very difficult to do. We are hindered by what the last government left us with, and local government finance is broken. For the last 15 years we’ve seen the Government say we’ll grant you £3million for a year, but the new Labour Government says this is the last time this will happen and next financial year it will be a three year settlement. I have to look at the budget thinking I will not be getting the money next year, this is no way to run central Government. To have a three year certainty is brilliant, we can look to the future knowing it’s more secure.”