The Isle of Wight Council is set to approve a budget which will see Council Tax bills increase by 4.99% from April, meaning an extra £86.46 per year for a typical Band D property – and at the same time the local authority is looking to make £3.9million of savings.
On top of the overall Council Tax rise, precept rises for town/parish councils, the fire service and Police will also drive up the overall bill. This will vary from property to property, town to town.
A Band D property will soon have to fork out £1,817.61 for the local authority, £251.46 for the Police and £80.43 for the fire service – a total of £2,149.50 plus the precept of the local town or parish, which in Sandown, for example, could be another £215.
Of the 4.99% rise, 2% will be ringfenced for adult social care with the Isle of Wight Council looking to spend an additional £7.6million on this sector, with a further £4.3million additional spend on children’s services.
Despite the increase in income, the Isle of Wight Council is looking to make almost £4million of savings. It’s said that an additional £6million in savings will need to be sought between 2024/25 and 2026/27, suggesting that there are harsher times to come.
Savings set to be made in the coming year include:
- Increase parking fees by 25p an hour across all tariffs across the Island from July 2023 (£195,000)
- Reduction in Cross-Solent travel grant to the NHS (£30,000)
- Organisational re-design through voluntary redundancies and vacancy management (£524,900)
- Increase in fees and charges for bereavement services such as the crematorium (£300,000)
- 10% increase in fees and charges for registration services (births, marriages and deaths) (£15,000)
- Vacating Jubilee Stores offices at Newport Quay (£80,000)
- Reduction in the frequency of maintenance at cemeteries and parks (£15,000)
- Removal of the position of Assistant Chief Executive (£150,000)
- Vehicle fees on Floating Bridge to return to pre-COVID levels of £2.50 and £3.00 (£98,000)
- Increase admission fee to Dinosaur Isle from £6 to £8 for adults (£33,000)
- Income and cost reduction measures for Wightcare (£150,000)
- Sale of 2nd residential bed t Beaulieu House to another local authority (£166,000)
- Sub-let catering facility at Dinosaur Isle to a concession (£10,000)
- Reduction in book replacement fund for libraries (£10,000)
- Halt of recruitment for additional staff in regulatory services (£115,000)
- Increase overnight parking charges between November and March (£36,600)
- Increase cost of all All Island permits by 20% (£10 extra a month, £110 a year) (£60,000)
- Increase cost of tourist permits from July 2023 (£11,000)
- Increase cost of 200m resident permit by 20% (£12,000)
On the flip side to savings, the Council is looking to spend money on new projects such as almost £2million on a ‘cultural venue’ in Ryde, in partnership with Shademakers, and £250,000 on a replacement roof and cladding for Cothey Bottom in Ryde (museum storage). £170,000 is being set aside to paint Shanklin Cliff Lift too.
A further £2.14million looks set to be spent on improving the stretch of road between Newport and Sandown – thought to be at Blackwater/Arreton. £450,000 will also be spent on switching to electric vehicles and £125,000 on installing electric charging points.
A whopping £676,302 has been put aside to replace the windows, toilets and lifts at County Hall and an additional £250,000 on air con for the server room.
The proposals put forward include an uplift in the council’s local council tax support scheme, from 65% to 70%, in addition to extra funding to support the provision of housing affordable for Island residents.
The local authority says that the effect of the war in Ukraine, the continuing impact of COVID and the turbulent national economic environment has created a very difficult situation. That said, the aspiration for the authority’s spending plans remains to reverse the annual cycle of cuts in the council’s budgets and reinvest in the services the community would like to see. In the past 12 years some £93 million of savings have been made.
Councillor Chris Jarman, Cabinet member for strategic finances, has said:
“The scale of the challenges faced in reaching a balanced budget demanded extraordinary efforts from all involved and a recognition that it was better we remained to represent the Island residents and businesses with the difficult decisions required.
“Surrendering to the situation as other authorities have had to do was unthinkable being a betrayal of those we represent.
“We know that the current cost of living crisis is creating intense pressures and we will continue to support residents wherever we can. In particular we have prioritised support to adult social care and children’s services which, coupled with honouring our undertaking to increase council tax support, directs help to those most vulnerable.
“We know residents are facing with the increased cost of living and so proposing a rise in council tax has been a very difficult decision. The alternative would have been to make significant cuts to core council services at a time when many people depend on them for support.”
The budget will be discussed at the Council’s Corporate Scrutiny Committee on 7th February, then presented at the Cabinet meeting on 9th February, with the final budget debated and voted on at Full Council on 22nd February.
£575,000 on virtue signalling with electric cars??
ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING!
the dirtiest, most polluting vehicles ever produced, but the idiots are determined to force the agenda, they of course, are not paying for the junk. what a criminal waste of money.
Blah blah blah, pirates and cowboys at county hall
They know we’re all struggling, right?
We knew that after Covid financial issues would arise, but adding on the current cost of living crisis – this is just down right ridiculous.
Perhaps I ought to rethink my career and become a council worker – I’m sure we’re all thought of as ‘peasants’. It must be real nice up there in their ivory tower whilst the rest of us are struggling to make ends meet.
*Trying to make ends meet in a dual income home, whilst both working full time in a decent career, might I add.
You know, just before I get told I should budget better – well, there’s only so much budgeting one can do without letting the house go mouldy, or catching hypothermia, or eating rice and beans like we’re living in IACGMOH.
the “cost of living crisis” is just fake news by the woke media
You do realised that council workers are in exactly the same position. We have to pay the same taxes that all other residents do. Do you somehow thing council workers all drive around in Tesla’s and only visit the island once a week to appear at County Hall?
No we pay them so they can pay the taxes
We pay for the vehicles they drive we pay the heat the office to keep them warm we pay for the electric they use
This is why they increase to the limit every year so they get a easy life
And to top it all they do very little work
£170,000 to paint Shanklin Cliff Lift are you joking
The Councilmshould scrutinise who they use.
Many of the Companies who carry out the works for the Council
take the p*ss with their bills.
Civil Engineering Companies etc are ripping off Islanders.
The Council should employ their own staff to carry out such works,
much cheaper.
Or better still make the unemployed do the work instead of just handing out money so they can just sit at home.
That is a good idea
They do scrutinise. Its all family and friends and the fattest wad in a under the tabe envelope
What fabulous accountants the council have
£250k on air conditioning for a server room? Whose got their trousers down?
Clearly you’ve never understood the importance of keeping servers cool
Open the sodding window and turn the heating off
Still wouldn’t be cool enough, needs to feel like a fridge all the time or the computer system fails.
all they need to do is leave the bl**dy window open
it’s a local council IT server FFS,.. not AWS!
You could save by not spending so much on electric car’s charging points , air con , windows etc, tart it up oh yes, and then rip us the cash cow’s off, still at least you will be comfortable, ….
How do you warrant spending all that money on you’re offices ?????
And then cutting back services !!!!!
Think this proves what we all know you are a selfish load of money grabbing pirates ( polite word !) ….
You have got it spot on – money always goes to money whilst poor get so poor their lives are brought to an early end ! No wonder crime will increase.
It’s called we Rip you Off by IWC .. sink the FB6 and no spending on the Council HQ this FY and stop wasting our money on useless projects ..
Just added up the ridiculous amount of their spending !!!!
Car’s and charging points , windows toilets lifts ,air con etc …..
Total £1501302 !!!!!!!!
How can you warrant that ????
Honest answer’s only, I won’t hold my breath !!!!
Hell will freeze over 1st …
How many staff walk at county hall ?????
And don’t forget parking charges will add to the fat pension pot’s …..
Crematorium charges up , remember from the cradle to the grave ,,,,,, well they will Rob us even when dead !!!!!
Councillor jarman states deciding the budget took extradinary effort to avoid cuts in core services,such as running donosaur island, it is not a core role of any council, saving 1 million plus if you sold it., 250 thousand for air con units in the server room, where do they get these figures from,we run such devices in our indistrial sized server room far bigger than the council offices, cost of each CRAC unit is maximum 4 thousand a time, that means you are either installing 60 units or more likely they are air conning the whole of the council offices. 170 thousand to repaint a lift and lift housing you cannot be serious on this one, unless one person is doing the job and the scaffolding is for five years. At least be honest councillor.
Thank christ we never voted in Corbyn.
After all, you don’t want a communist in charge, do you?
We going to save money but charge you fools more! What do we get for our money? Street lighting, bad roads, non responsive police, bins emptied once a week!
I know a couple of good people who work in the council- GET OUT NOW!!!!! You are surrounded my soulless b******s!!!!! You are not superior, you are not saving the country from crumbling, you are the cause of it and the bane of everyones lives!!!
Can the rise be paid in shirt buttons because that’s all some people have left
How about they shop around a bit next time they need some work done £170k on painting Shanklin lift £250k on air conditioning £676k on windows toilet and lifts.
WTF….who they got coming to do the lift banksy lmao
And let me guess the same rise again next year and the year after so on and so on until us mugs have to sell up and live on the streets but then you will probably find a way to charge us for that
4 miles of fencing on Cowes to Newport cycle path, why?
They don’t know where to waste other peoples money next.
How about everyone stops and grow a pair and refuse to pay ! It’s the only way . All standing together !!
Makes you laugh don’t it. Most of the savings are increased fees to be paid by the public. So they getting us both ways.
New windows for county hall are not a necessity. Suck up the old ones.
We just can take this sort of increase we will be in the gutter very soom
What an absolute disgrace how do these morons think that we can find the money to pat this increase, every year they put the council tax up the most they can,then Police etc increase there precept,perhaps I’d we all stop eating and heating our homes we might be able to pay!
My suggestion: re police we pay on results and by this I do not mean harassment of motorist.The council is reduced in numbers councillors by at least fifty percent and what the remainder are allowed to claim be linked to what pensioners receive .
Any other agencies set precepts are also judged on results and rises only allowed in proportion to there success.
This is so disgusting that council tax payers are having to pay for rich , electric car’s at county hall , more charging points, painting a lift etc etc when people are loosing will to live and struggling to feed themselves or kids etc. Like making someone pay for a 3 course meal for council staff member then give them in return a hand out of slice of bread. Putting car parking up, entrance fees won’t increase revenues,it will decrease as less will use. County Hall should close, council services still operated in COVID with people working from home. Elections due now, before someone’s life ends because of this selfish and bullying Council.
I would recommend a number of measures that would source income from interlopers, Grockles and other transients who invariably utilise our services be it health, constabulary, or council to clear up – levy a city/island tax (akin to many european conurbation) on every hotel room, air b&b room, campsite plot etc. Levy a tax on anyone arriving on the island not registered to pay council tax. The amounts don’t need to be eye watering, given 2.6 million come per year (compared to the 140,000 stable residents).
They all ready do… they are called Red Funnel and Wightlink… but I was in A&E, waited for 6hrs (the staff were nice tho) and the amount of people giving postcodes that weren’t from the island were astounding.. however it is free health care, and I’m sure we would expect the same care if we were visiting our second (or third) homes…
That’s a really sensible idea, love to know who will get tender for painting lift in Shanklin
So the logic and intelligence of the council in an already spiraling cost of living crisis and recession is charge us even more for services that no longer exist pay more for a police force that may as well not exist given the increasing crime levels on the island and waist millions of OUR money so they can have new lifts in county hall why can’t they walk up the steps Christ knows they all need the exercise not one of them at county hall under 250lbs no wonder the lifts are knackered and waste more on new roof for a storage building that probly only stores outdated paperwork what a “great” country this is it’s getting more like Russia every day maybe better way for them to save money is all these councilors take a 60% pay cut .
They don’t give a toss as long as their back pockets are fall,getting rid of them at the top would help
And as for electric cars what a waste of time effort and money that will be given it’s a failing market already due to them taking too long to charge they don’t have the range on a charge you need from a car and they are less environmentally friendly that my 20 year old diesel given they really run on coal the mining of minerals for the batteries etc they cost more to buy more to ensure and more to fix and have less than half the life span of a conventional proper car with a engine the second hand ev market is non existent as buy time they are replaced the by owners the batteries are knackered and climate change is a natural part of the planets life cycle nothing to do with humans it would be happening as it is if humans never existed
If the Asst chief is on £150kpa how much is the chief on??? Slash his/her wages by half… save a bit more
The authorities are saying the impact of the Ukraine war is continuing to impact, don’t they realise it’s also impacting every one of us as well. Whoever made that statement wants their ass kicked.
Shocking, why should we keep paying for the Councils mistakes.
Won’t be too long before Council Tax is £3,000.00
Pay more for less, that is the Tory way.
its not a tory council
The council is an Alliance who favour secrets to hide awkward questions. They’re not Tories.
In the normal world outside of the public sector, if you said you were making 3.9 million savings then that would mean you are reducing your overall spend – if you spaffed away 30 million on your salaries and pensions and a further million in actually delivering services the taxpayers think they are paying for, then last year you spent 31 million but this year you’ll be spending 27.1 million, so council tax should be falling, not increasing – only in the minds of bureaucrats can saving 3.9 million result in a 4.99% increase in bills
On the flip side to savings, the Council is looking to spend money on new projects such as almost £2million on a ‘cultural venue’ in Ryde,
Are they actually taking the p&ss – how about they don’t bother spending that, cut the wasteful taxi fares of a million a year on those SEND kids, cut that million a year, karl love said was being spent on 3 peoples care packages and voila – £4 million saved immediately
get rid of these sponging clowns at the council
This is what happens when we let them do what they want instead of Kicking off.
How much longer are we Let the council rip us off
All those cuts and another huge tax rise. But still found £365000.00 to give to those who only pay 35,% of there council tax bill.
Sorry, Increases are NOT savings, they are additional increase. You are then making additional income not saving money. Lets be straight and honest with people.
Charge permit parking Islandwide that will pay for these works.
How about abandoning the round Britain cycle race, throwing more of our money at a company who shafted us last time.
Think it would be cheaper to knock down County Hall and rebuild, awful looking place, in fact surprised it got pass planning! With the number of staff still working from home is it really necessary? This is an extraordinary list from our Council considering forecast is for an even worse depression in the financial market. Nice they are encouraging people to visit our town centres with an increase in parking charges and floating bridge fees. The whole Council needs restructuring far too many departmental “heads” and not enough “coalface” workers. Someone is operating will rose tinted glasses on and not really seeing the whole picture when the residents of the Island can see it very clearly.
Pedestrian still pays £1 for transport of his 50-100kg or whatever. Car paying £3 for 2060-3100kg is still maaaaaaaaasive subsidy.
What’s a permit?
Regarding “all permits”, “residential” and “tourist” permits.
I’ve been living here for few years and never heard of it? You need some permit to access the Island?