As Council Tax looks set to rise by the maximum amount for Islanders, the ruling party has said it hopes to change direction from just ‘managing decline’.
The Isle of Wight Council budget is currently being worked up and will be decided in February ahead of the next financial year.
It is also the Alliance’s first budget following 4 years of Conservative plans, which the new administration slammed as just ‘tightening the council’s belt further and further’.
Councillor Lora Peacey-Wilcox said last week that previous savings had been ‘mistakenly described’ to cover an ongoing process of cuts that she said cannot continue.
She said in the upcoming budget the Alliance looked to invigorate the council and develop a financial strategy built on growth, not cuts, warning if they fail to do so some key services could be stopped.
The group’s primary aim, she said, must be on generating what the Island economy needs to ‘thrive, survive and drive’ through actions and initiatives.
Following an approved financial strategy under the previous administration, Cllr Peacey-Wilcox said they have ‘with their hands tied’ had to make £3million of savings from the budget. She said:
“We have sought to do this in the least damaging way possible and our approach is to protect whatever we can. We can then start rebuilding and regenerating the council from a sound financial basis, instead of managing decline.”
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Following years of insufficient government, Cllr Peacey-Wilcox pledged to actively seek recognition to be treated as an Island but they ‘cannot rely on that happening any time soon’.
Islanders will get their first glimpse of the proposed budget in February. However, you can have your say beforehand in a budget consultation. It is open until 21st January and you can fill it in at www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/BD9VYJF.
Well for one thing you don’t need a new website, that would save you lots of money, there is an old saying if it ain’t broke don’t fix it.
It is coming to a time when, like the Poll tax riots, that people may soon consider NOT paying their council tax at all for a year as a protest at the way spongers are kept in luxury and we have less than them to live on.
ALL people should pay a minimum of ten percent of council tax, otherwise the spongers don’t care how much it is or gone up, as it dosen’t matter to them.
IF everyone paid something then it would ease the burden for others AND make even the low life think.
You should check your facts. The maximum rebate for council tax is 65% ..
Therefore everyone pays AT LEAST 35%
of the charge for the appropriate band. Therefore your suggestion that the spongers don’t care falls down … But many other council areas do offer up to 100% rebates so spongers would be better off moving off the island.
More like protect yourselves and your over inflated wages. For gods sake normal people are find it tough enough as it is. Enough is enough. Take a pay cut for once.
i am band b paying for a terrace house 2 up 2down and an outside loo yes an outside loo westminister pay the same for band h instead of taking wages do the job free for the good of the people greedy council
I look forward to the Alliance making ‘savings’ not ‘cuts’.
That’s a magic trick no authority ever has managed to pull off.
Check out all the fake disability claimaints, and their PAID family care workers, also swindling the system.
NOT talking about the genuine cases, but the growing number milking an ever enlarged cash cow now that ‘mental health’ is the priority in the UK.
Where once family members helped their relations for free, they all claim hundreds to do little or nothing that they would have done anyway.
Also those claiming to be single parents YET always have a partner need checking out.
Yes husband is wife’s carer and then the wife is the child’s carer. How can someone who needs a carer be a carer for somebody else. That shouldn’t be allowed
when you need to make savings you stop spending on unessential things – like vanity projects, old buildings, status bids, events etc
but they don’t, cos they can’t help themselves, they’re glory seekers
The Council need to use the correct language. It’s not ‘savings’ it’s cuts. Cuts to services already on their knees, and providing a reduced service, if at all, thanks to Govt cuts, passed down to local authorities to implement.
cut the adult social care sponge budget and cut that website at £750k
They could save £50,000 by not taking part in the dark sky project, either that or take part by just turning lights off. they live in a world of wander.
I can suggest a way the council can make huge savings, close County Hall.
Did you need a fleet if electric vehicles????
Did you need air conditioning????
Do we need dark skies ….
Did you need an engineer to the tune of £38-000 ,to ensure the (push me pull floating bridge worked) ?????
Look at all you consider essential and I think we can all see where you are wasting our Council tax !!!!!!!!!
Oh yes and as several people have said New computer system ???????
And the old chestnut we inherited debts ,doesn’t wash anymore!!!…
And yet they’re spending three quarters of a million Pounds on a new website?
For goodness sake, look closer to home to make the savings. If my business was having to make 3 million Pounds of savings in order to balance the books, the last thing I’d be doing is ordering a three quarters of a million Pound website upgrade.
Please, IWC, just stop and think about that for a few minutes.
They won’t stop and they definitely don’t think.
How about willcox and the rest take a pay cut. Stop the unnecessary building of new council offices and stop buy land and property’s on the mainland and actually give something back to the island. All our local government party’s are as bad as each other out to feather their own nests with complete dis regard to whom it affects until it comes to their own front door they could not give a damn!!!
When people that need care on the island they are being broken away from their family and friends and being shipped off to the mainland. Wouldn’t happen to one of their own!!!!
Record rises every year. With our services cut, why hasn’t council staffing been reduced.
Feckless and scroungers must be protected from any cuts.
Wow, the amount they have had to apparently ‘save’ over the last 10 years must now be running into tens of millions, yet our national taxes keep on spiraling upwards and the council tax and police precept does likewise( always well above inflation) , whilst the pitiful services we get from them shrink more and more every year – something really doesn’t add up does it? Or could it be all that extra cash now gets poured into ‘fighting’ climate change or ‘diversity and inclusion’ and other projects which in reality deliver no benefit to anyone other than those ‘working’ on them
Instead of picking on the working class, go after the many council tax dodgers out there, plenty about. How about the over paid numpters at the council with their insane salaries and obscene pensions for doing sod all. Put your own house in order first councillors, wishful thinking!!.
Whoops typo error should have said ‘ Numpties‘.
How much will they pilfer from the Home Office money to pay for the roads of Camp Hill and surrounding area.
The street lights Island Roads are putting are second hand stock paint flaking off etc, right shambles.