The Isle of Wight Council has set its budget and council tax for 2020/21, with an emphasis on protecting the young, the elderly and most vulnerable in our society – but that comes at the cost of a 3.99% rise in council tax.
Tonight’s (Wednesday’s) meeting of the Full Council agreed the budget, which included a council tax increase of 1.99% for general requirements plus 2% specifically for adult social care — around £1.09 per week for a Band C property. The increase will help the council continue to deliver essential services to residents.
7% of the £4.5million the council has to save for the year ahead will come from service reductions as it continues to deliver substantial and innovative efficiency savings alongside initiatives to generate income.
The council has proposed to invest more than £6.6million for capital projects in 2020/21, including £1.7million in improvements grants to help residents with disabilities to remain in their own homes.
In addition, £55,000 is planned to improve frontline public services by establishing a second Isle Help facility — this time in Ryde — following the success of the joint provision set up at County Hall in 2018.
Earlier this week it was announced by Government that the Isle of Wight Council was to receive an extra £8.2million, but it has been suggested that the money has already been accounted for in the budget.
Council leader, Dave Stewart, said:
“For the fourth year running we have been able to ‘balance the books’ and meet our future funding requirements.
Article continues below this advertisement “In the coming year the council will spend more than £203 million on frontline services, including an extra £6.5 million in adult social care and children’s services. This level of investment in these statutory services reflects just how much we recognise and prioritise these essential services for our community.
“We have a clear strategy to keep the council financially balanced and sustainable. As a result, we’re pleased to say we can reduce our savings target for the next three years by £3 million (to £10.5 million), keeping to a consistent downward trend that we have delivered in our required savings for the last four years.
“This reflects a major improvement in the council’s overall financial position.”
Cuts and changes to council services in 2020/21 include:
• Reduce beach cleaning from daily to weekly, with the exception of Ryde (daily) and in school holidays (daily)
• Introduce all-year-round parking fees on Esplanades including Culver, Sandown, Shanklin, Ventnor, Cowes and Gurnard
• Increasing Wightcare installation cost from £40 to £80 but including key safe within that price (currently £15)
• Restrict van visits to Lynnbottom and Afton to 12 visits per year only
• Increase cost of swimming lessons by £1, concessionary fee by £1.50 and sports hall prices by 10%
• £12 increase in garden waste service from £60 to £72 per annum
• Re-tender school bus contract with an aim to save £310,000
• 7% increase in fees and charges for burials and cremations
• 6% increase in fees and charges for licensed premises and EU citizen status fee
• Reduce the book fund for libraries and review staffing structure
• Reduction in grounds maintenance services in parks and cemeteries – summer bedding reduced or stopped in some areas
• Increase Newport Harbour fees by 10%
• Increase booking fee for all ticket purchases for Medina Theatre
• Changes to Island and supplementary parking permits, merging into a single permit plus 20% increase in resident and tourist permits
• Increase short stay car park charges by around 20p an hour and increase on-street parking to £2.00 for 1 hour
• Introduce a charge of £2.00 a day at Cowes Park and Ride
• 10% increase in building control fees
• Termination of Enterprise House lease
Deputy leader, Councillor Stuart Hutchinson, added:
“We feel this budget continues to give protection and support for the most vulnerable and balances that need with ensuring we provide continued services for the hard-working taxpayers who fund what we do.”
The budget was passed with 23 votes in favour, 12 against with 1 abstention.
They forgot…
above inflation pay rises for all councillors and council staff
above inflation employer pension contributions into the council staff, gold plated final salary scheme.
above inflation increases to their expenses allowances, entertainments budges, travel allowances, fact finding trips to far flung exotic locations.
we were told, lowest council tax bills – clearly they need the extra for their drinks bills and taxi fares.
It’s not as if they will spend it on anything decent for the island, there’s nothing decent here to do for adults or kids! Talk about killing the island and it’s tourism even more ♂️. If you don’t protest, this will carry on… stop paying to park for a start!
How about you focus on protecting the bank balances of the hard working taxpayers, by cutting the ridiculous amount you spend on taxi fares for special educational needs. The families of those using the taxi’s should be paying for their own transport, not the rest of us – how about you pay for my taxi to work and back then.
stop wasting so much money on lying dossers, junkies, alco’s, benefit spongers, asylum seekers and any other burden on society that can be identified as a non genuine case.
Why pick on disabled children. the families did not ask for there child to be born this way…. shame on you and shame on whoever had liked your comment….. every child has a right to an education I’m sure if you asked any of the families they would rather there child be able attended a main stream school and live a normal life…the children who are taxied are taxied for a reason… so why should they be isolated and be made to pay because a bus ride isn’t suitable for them… and just remeber we will all become a burden on society at some point whether that’s getting old or loosing your job or perhaps and accicdent and maybe you will be less narrow minded
the rest of us in society are not financially responsible for others children under any circumstances and should not be expected to pay for taxi fares through increased taxation. We work hard to support ourselves, not others. I do not get up every day and go out to work in all weathers, just to see more of the money I make for myself taken from me against my will in taxes and then see it handed out to others to fund their taxi costs.
All other kids have to fund their own way to school – you want equality, then pay for your own transport. I am fed up with hearing people demand to be treated equally due to a disability, then in the same breath expect to be treated differently, by having discounts and subsidised travel costs.
I really hope nothing happens to you or one of your family… a stroke or a brain injury and then the tax payers money will have to look after you… nobody forcing you to live in this country and as country we pay our taxes… and don’t for a second think that because family’s have a disabled child they don’t pay tax because they do many families I have worked for have good job yet they happen to have a disabled child…you want to pick on people what about the benifit families that have children we pay for there school dinners even there school trips.. don’t pick on the disabled because many of them are unable to stand up for themselves on platforms like this. Shame on you
we wouldn’t be paying so much tax, if people paid their own taxi fares and didn’t expect the rest of us to subsidise their lives for them, no matter what form it takes. You scroll through the IW council expenditure each month as I have done and see just how much of everybody’s hard earned money is frittered away on taxi fares – we are not interested in paying for other peoples kids and that is that.
Pay for your own kids expenses, we have to.
Disgusting all the money they waste and killing the high st with higher parking charges
Social care was the excuse for the raise last year , then a few months later they cut social care , lying corrupt bastards ,so where did the money really go ! They need forcibly remouving from the building !
Every increase above inflation sorry but this is crap. Let’s put car parking permits up by nearly 50% and wonder why car parks are empty apart from free council workers car park in Newport Time for blue badge holders to pay their way for parking
They have now made a blue badge much easier to get… which results in every car park you go in the bays are full…. I think the people that need a blue badge most yes let them keep it for free as so many are having there budgets cut and having to pay for essential care out of there own money why make them pay more… but the blue badge shouldn’t be so easy to get hold of
House owners get hit again whilst counsellors continue to claim ever increasing expenses.. Half the number of councillors job done money saved no need for yet another increase
So let me get this straight the Council gets a confirmed grant of 8.2 Million from the government and then a day later confirms a 3.99% increase in our Council Tax…. Have i got that right because I was taught that was fraud. Surely as a community we can all say that is wrong.
I think all councils and governments are corrupt, it’s never going to change.
Business as usual then. Increasing coincil tax and reducing services meaning that the island will get even more run down than it already is and they’ll be more fly tipping. Crippling small businesses with higher rates and licensing costs and stopping people shopping in the high Street by ever increasing parking charges. Way to go Isle of Wight Council. Still at least when I end up bankrupt and have a mental breakdown I’ll get better social care! Maybe
another rise in council tax 4th year in a row….i expect now these dicks that run this island will give themselves a pat on the back and a pay rise never known a council like these morons waste so much money…think they are more interested in lining thier own pockets….#CORRUPT
This island is f$&)Ed!
Council leader, Dave Stewart needs to go back and re look at the figures, make some cuts and make use of the vast reserves the council has salted away, which is taxpayers money. This council do not need extra, they already have it stashed away – they are just ripping off the taxpayers, pretending that they need more for social care.
Then announce that council tax bills are to fall this year.
social care, which is rapidly turning into a bottomless pit full of liars, cheats and other scammers, too lazy to work and run by a bunch of lefty, socialist hand wringers who are too weak and pathetic to say “no, get off your backside and get a job, you lazy sponge”. It is time the council got rid of these do gooders, that run the social care side of things and then perhaps, they would grow a backbone and make the necessary cuts.
100% agree. What do these benefit spongers contribute to our society? Nothing they just drain resources . No excuses get those that can working which is the majority. Why should us taxpayers subsidise their habits?
The building control fees increase is a joke. How much money has been spent revamping that Planning portal from the easy to use efficient working sit that it was to the total unusable rubbish that it is now?? We plough all these extra funds into education but omit to get your average 12-year old to revamp the site – they would have done a much better job of it.
Another nice cosy tendered out contract tendered by people who know nothing to people who can’t perform and then suffered by anyone trying to use it.
Yet more money on social care, whilst everything else is left to rot. Why do social services funded by poll tax look after people up to 25 years old?
As every other year, council provides less services, but same staff level?
Not all older people receive help,just some who have benefited all there life.
same old story – dicky – the council are too inept at creating real employment on the island as it is not in their skill set – (it is not in any council admin execs skill set, otherwise they wouldn’t be working at the council), so what do they do?
A. They expand the local government sector by creating non jobs, pointless committees and layer upon layer of bureaucracy, which requires more and more staff to be employed – they then say they need more money to pay for all this expansion, which they dress up as “frontline services are at risk” – which they aren’t.
and after all that, they pat theirselves on the back, proudly shouting about how unemployment is down on the island and award theirselves large pay rises and bonuses, which must be paid for by tax payers.
meanwhile, the bins haven’t been emptied, the streets haven’t been swept, the car parks are empty (well, apart from the great swathes of blue badge holders), the shops are empty as the hard working taxpayers have come to the conclusion that, doing everything in their power to avoid paying these liars any money, is the correct way to go.
We should introduce our own cuts, namely refusing to pay the extra 3.99% increase and just pay whatever our last years bill was.
Exactly. It is all well and good moaning on here, but it will never, ever change anything. Refuse to pay the rise and anything else that they want to rip people off with.
The power is with the people, not a bunch of corrupt cowards sat in an office block in Newport!
I wouldn’t have a clue on how to start that ball rolling but you’re right, the people have the only power here, they’re the ones funding this corruption. But, a strong level headed leader of an opposition party has to stand tall for people to support and follow, with real and sensible actions being organised and taken against the council. I don’t believe i could lead that kind of front but there must be at least one suitable candidate out there. Come on, this is your calling, help us tax payers!
I totally agree, instead of just accepting the rise each year, while services are been cut (we would not accept this from any other service provider), we need to band together and act. The final kick in the teeth is the council been given an extra £8.2 million from the government and still cutting services.
Or not bother at all. I don’t have kids that go to school. So why should I have to pay for someone’s kids to get Below standards education! Public loos which we don’t have anymore and the ones we do have you have to pay to use. The police that are stretched to untold levels. Rubbish collection when we have to do the job for them then we have to call them because they don’t empty the bins. The royal family that have no benefit to us what so ever. So the list goes on. Wake up Britain get with the chuffing time. All we should actually pay for is the Nhs not for some jumped up bigot in number 10 who doesn’t know what a comb is and the rest of the politicians.
What are they trying to do kill the towns £2.00 parking for an hour they must be getting a back hander from the out of town stores or holidays. Make all parking free the business rates is to much as it is
all that ends up happening is that entrepreneurs decide that there is no point starting a business on the island, because
the thieving council expect to have their hand in the till before anyone else, in the form of business rates and then have their hands in the pockets of the customers in the form of parking charges before they even get to the shop.
The sponging council disgust me – if they really cared about the economic wellbeing and revenue generative capacity of the commercial sector, then they would ensure parking is free for all “in town” car parks and that businesses are not charged rates and only pay a “price of doing business on the island fee” on the operating profits of the business and only after an amount equal to the minimum wage is taken out for employees. (staff would be paid more, but for local tax purposes that would be the figure)
operating profits meaning …revenue, less cost of sales, less admin costs.
I wonder how much income their portfolio of properties on the mainland is generating now.
I bet there bloody wages will go up to cover there increase….I’m self employed who going to put mine up….oh hang NO 1…..but the people on the dole will b ok cause il pay there’s so they can sit at home and do sweet fa
Being self employed can be the sh1t end of the stick, you can’t pass increases on to your customers, they’ll go elsewhere.
In the last twenty years my wages have increased by 15%…. everything else seems to have increased by 100-200%
How much more do they think they can squeeze from us all!!! WTF
This makes me 3 times poorer than 20 years ago in real terms.
Inflation has been low for many years. Yet every year poll tax goes up by huge amounts. Now lot worse, parish councils also put in large increases. Lot of there cost is setting up and then expanding the empire.
With no thought how hard pushed tax payers will cover it.
By restricting the vans at the tip sites you are encouraging fly tipping. Has anyone thought about that! Who will clean the mess up then..
They’ll put the council tax up again next year to cover the cost of contractors having to clear it!
The right wing Gammon’s are up in arms because they have to pay more council tax due to the austerity policies of a Tory government that they voted for.
Hilarious.
I shall, of course, continue my 100pc embargo of the use of any of your car parks and anywhere you exercise control over parking.
I am beginning to regret my move to the island, if I am honest.
I moved here in July and it’s a load of rubbish from the way the council expect ppl to pay for a town hall in East Cowes through council tax and just the attitude of the people towards people who travel over who provide a lot of the revenue.
Well, this budget is as depressing as the weather at the moment. Beaches not to be daily cleaned, other than Ryde. Families come to the Island for the beaches, our grandchildren love them; but we will not be using them when dirty.
Restrictions to the tip for vans, people that are self-employed have to use the Lynnbottom and Afton tip – jobs usually involve clearing the rubbish. It will be dumped in our countryside.
A rise to park in the town. In the main people park in the towns to use maybe one/ two shops – this will encourage us to use well known online sites which offer free delivery. More shops to close in our towns.
Reduce the book fund and staffing in our libraries. People look for the latest fiction books in our libraries, if they are not readily available, they will stop going. We have extreme poverty on the Island and all children should be encouraged to borrow and enjoy books from the library. I think you the Council are letting our children down by reducing this facility.
Reducing the ground maintenance in our parks. For some parents and children, our parks are their play area.
Did only the 12 who voted against this budget and the 1 abstention think about the Social Science of this budget.
To many bloody spongers on this island if they can sign on give them a job to easy there just get there girlfriends pregnant and claims benefits still has enough money for drugs tho I think when dead heads go to sign on drug test them if they fail test no benefits
I suggest you look at what your saying and how it makes you look. Clearly a tori. I bet your retired or close to it. Oh guess what who will be paying for your cruises and pensions!!!!!
@justataxper
those who are retired, have, on the whole been paying national insurance throughout their working lives. The purpose of National Insurance, is to create your entitlement to the state pension. So, those pensioners claiming have paid in and are now withdrawing that money after they have retired.
There are obviously those spongers that have done eff all throughout their lives that also claim the state pension – these bone idle scrotes, shouldn’t be entitled to anything.
Actually it’s to pay for health care!
It entitles you to your state pension not healthcare. Except if you’ve never paid in you get one anyway! Make them work and have vouchers not cash as benefits so they can’t buy their drugs and alcohol.
Even Dick Turpin wore a mask!!
Have to pay for park and ride!!! Sod that, going to park in the road now taking up space for residents.
We’re used to that cos nobody will pay to use car parks! Don’t blame them even if it is infuriating to not be able to park in your own road!
After the big pay back in to the tories pockets. well done so they can carry on with the social cleansing!
Yet another rise for the hard working.
Beach cleaning funding down, ok get the scum bags of society out from in front of their sky boxes and PlayStations and get them to earn their free loading money by cleaning the beaches, cemeteries and roads.
I’m sure their weed plants will be fine for 8 hours, and the neighbour can feed their 4 dogs, 3 cats, oh and the hamster. Their 4 kids will be at the free school breakfast club we pay for. Then again the Drs will be inundated with back pain claims, which their grand parents would have taught them how to work the system as we are now in third generation lay abouts. So it’s a no win scenario.
Tory or labour council would make no difference to any budget as they are all the same ” what’s in it for me”
Not what’s best for this island.
So once again we sit here moaning and groaning but nothing will ever change.
true caulk head
very true, when the welfare state was created, it wasn’t designed as a lifestyle choice – back in those days, it was seen as a shame on the family if you had to take state handouts – nowadays there is no such shame, in fact some are overly proud of it.
the only difference between the tory and labour administrations is that the torys like to pay less benefits than labour and that is about it.
the one saving grace, is that there is an absolute upper limit that a benefit system can pay, before it begins to collapse the fabric of the society – that being, pay too much in benefits, then no one works and then what – no fresh water, no electric, no gas, no food, no shops – you get the picture.
None given….. I agree with what you are saying and yes there is a cap, but unfortunately because we are now in third generation breeders they have evolved and learnt how to milk the system. So rather than picking up universal credit, they can get additional funding for their mobile phones, cigarettes and beer by claiming to have depression, stress, ADHD, ODD, shall I continue. What has the world come to when we have 18 year olds claiming to have all these disabilities.
Disability premium is added to their funding aswell as their trips down to the local food bank. So who’s laughing, I’m certainly not.
Don’t say this does not happen as I know two 18 year olds, and one 19 year old that claim this. Two have children, so soon we’ll be in fourth generation wasters.
i do not disagree with you at all caulk head.
I personally know of people who left school in the 1980’s who have never worked a day in their lives, ever and have “blagged the sick” all that time, claiming to have back ache, depression, voices in their heads. You name it, they had it, just to ensure that they didn’t get put on job seekers or unemployment benefit, as it was known then.
I even asked one of them about their “ailments” and they said – “nah.. just a blag to stay on the sick”
The sad thing is, their parents, weren’t working either and are now pensioners, still doing eff all.
This means –
1st generation didn’t work before and were claiming benefits
2nd generation left school in 1985 – never worked a day so far and had kids as teenagers.
3rd generation left school in early 2000’s and to this day, do not work and had kids as teenagers.
4th generation left school in 2019 and guess what – have infants or are pregnant now and do not work.
This is four generations of a family that have never contributed or worked at all in nearly 50 years and the fifth
generation are either being born or are infants now – all live in council accommodation and claim every benefit under
the sun.
Needless to say, the only thing that has changed, over the generations, is the type of claim – most say they have inherited the
same from parents.
There is a block of flats near me and there are 12 flats – only two flats have working people in them – the rest are spongers
and not related to the people I refer to above.
Sadly, with the likes of them taking up space at the doctors, taking money from the benefits pot, taking up space in social housing and taking up the time of support workers, there is less time, money and resources for the genuine cases, who suffer endless delays for support, housing and cash.
Used to be if you couldn’t afford to have children you didn’t. Now they don’t worry cos there’s always the decent hard working tax payers that’ll pay everything for you. It’s seen as their right.
Your a fool and really should be educated in social behaviour and care!! Keep walking around with your eyes closed I am sure you will soon fall flat on your face and soon eat your own words!!
Why do you lot keep throwing insults around.
It’s the local government and council that impose these tax hikes they would happen regardless. This is what happens when you have bigots voting tori. So think before you run your mouth off mate!!
Listen up council.
I have worked in and with social spongers.
The lies and cheaters I’ve dealt with would make any decent hard working tax payer cry.
I personally would not comment on this subject had I not dealt with it first hand.
Half the rises are because these rodents bleed this country dry and Unfortunatly are protected by human rights laws.
My grandfather and the 100s of thousands of British soldiers gave their lives for these scum bags and what thanks do they get, cemetery cuts, thugs urinating on memorials and the survivors of the war mugged and killed for drugs and alcohol.
Before this country bans total freedom of speech, I will have my say and no I’m no tori.
@listen up council.
no they wouldn’t happen regardless – if there weren’t so many lying scumbags claiming benefits that do not actually need them, then the rest of us wouldn’t be paying so much in taxation – we work for ourselves, we do not go out to work pay for the lives of others.
The local government and council would increase charges to cover the costs, which would be substantially lower, overall if there weren’t so many lying scumbags claiming.
you need to educate yourself in “not being taken for a mug, by the scumbags claiming”
Simple really, if every worker goes on strike
But sadly there are too many snowflakes here
Follow the French
Don’t blame people that have genuine reasons on not being able to work!
God forbid anything happens to you or any of your family that puts you in that situation.
Then you will how see remarks like snow flake and scum bags make you feel.
There are people out there that only wish they could work but can so please think about what your saying.
This is when everyone has to come together.
People on benefits have to pay tax to the council too so please don’t be so quick to judge.
no listen up council we do not have to come together.
we do not want to pay anything towards some deadbeat low life alco junkie who is sat on its arse doing nothing, other than claiming every penny under the sun and doing eff all for it.
you say people on benefits pay tax to the council…. whilst they may pay indirect taxation, such as VAT on goods and services, they aren’t getting up in the morning and going out in all weathers to do a job are they. Those getting benefits are at home watching the tv, whereas someone else is working – that is the difference.
some peoples definition of genuinely not be able to work is vastly different from most others – I see people working hard, with all sorts of disabilities and ailments, not sat at home, whining like a snowflake scumbag with some lame excuse.
Sorry, but I didn’t include the people that you mentioned, maybe I should have, as I like you, know people in that situation. My point was, the only way to show the government that we mean business, is for every worker to withdraw their labour, and sadly, the people you mentioned, could of course join the working force, but they will still get their benefits, this is about working people giving up their wages to make the government reconsider, its what’s called, going on strike
I have just sent this to the islands MP.
Hello bob
As you are more than aware with your so called honourable friends in the Isle of Wight council have now inflated taxes once again by 3.99%. This is leaving your constituents in great danger of crime starvation and other forms of poverty. This needs to change. They are putting the taxes up but wages and other incomes remain unchanged. Within the last 20 years the average income has gone up by 10-15%.
But taxes and cost of living have risen by 175%- 200%. This needs to be spoken about at Westminster. The local council should not be able to enforce these tax hikes. This is what parliament is for to run the country as a whole. I have seen so many sad things on the island because people can’t afford to eat keep their homes even their children because they are forced to pay ridiculous amounts of money in taxes when they do not earn that amount of money or receive in benefits that is meant to be tax free and we are meant to be tax exempt but guess what bob we are not due to your council. Then the government have to cheek to wonder why there is a huge crime wave.
Poverty and crime go hand in hand
The UNITED NATIONS have already said that the uk is in humanitarian crisis. A man from your military back ground has seen first hand what people do when backed up into a corner. The island is one of the most expensive places to live with some of the poorest people and lowest incomes.
What is happening to your poorer constituents is classed as social cleansing.
People are not being listened to nor cared for this is abuse in the highest degree.
At the end of every month the average house hold -£136.43 due to taxes and poor funding. I am asking you once again! To bring this up in Westminster as this is a dangerous choice that they have chosen to do. When a lot of the people of the Isle of Wight have NO confidence in this shambles of a council. And when we voice this we are just plebs that have to know where our place is in the order of society.
I wish to have a local public meeting with you In attendance. People are very angry and it’s people that are not able to work for what ever reason be it lack of jobs that would take unskilled or ill are getting the brunt of this. Not the appropriate people.
please correspond via post
Kind regards
make sure you post the response you get
I shall.
Well done! He only needs to look at these posts to see how his constituents feel.
But the abuse some of these half whits are throwing around just allows it to happen even more. That’s the sad thing
It’s not abuse it’s reality and we’re all fed up with it
This council are destroying the island. We rely on holiday makers coming here but with the ever increasing parking fees, now the beach cleaning is going to be reduced apart from Ryde from daily to weekly and little if no floral displays. So why pay the extortionate ferry fees to get here only to be ripped off further. Get the lazy louts who have been claiming benefits and never worked litter picking the streets and beaches so they contribute to island society, that would save some money and get them off their arses each day.
Don’t pick on disabled people when we have plenty of ‘able’ bodied lounging around just waiting for their next free payday!
Turf them out at the next election! Doing nothing to generate employment here
Won’t attempt to stop the ferry companies ripping off holiday makers
Schools are some of the worst in the country
Killed off the local small local businesses by selling out to the supermarkets
Successive council’s have wasted our money for years
Let’s not even mention the floating bridge!
the conservatives are the least worse option – and that is the state of play in this country – the rest of the politicians and parties are just laughable with what they come out with and not one of them is even close to be a global statesman. We voted tory because they are the party that will do the least damage to our pockets – that is why they are in power.
just pigs
Proud that I don’t work for the council. Only wish I didn’t have to contribute hard earned money to them. Let’s be honest, if they were to sell their products (services) through a high street shop, would you go in? I wouldn’t.