The Labour MP for Isle of Wight West has explained why he voted against the council’s budget last week – after widespread criticism of the Government over a lack of funding for the Island.
Richard Quigley said the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats did not take the opportunity to be bold and stand up for Islanders and added he could not vote for a budget which will ‘impose £6million in cuts’ to council services, despite £28million being held in council reserves.
He emphasised his support for Councillor Geoff Brodie’s alternative budget plan, saying it did not include cuts but would have used some reserves to protect services and avoid car parking charges.
However, Conservative group leader Councillor Ed Blake said going down the route Mr Quigley and Cllr Brodie wanted would have ‘almost certainly led to bankruptcy’.
Councillor Andrew Garratt, who leads the Liberal Democrats, said Labour had imposed an ‘unfair funding review’ which had made the Island’s situation ‘even worse’.
Core parts of the passed budget include a 4.99% council tax increase, a statement reading ‘there will be no compulsory redundancies’ – despite an amended staff reduction programme amounting to £541,000, £14.8m more for adult social care and £3.9m extra on children’s services.
With incorporated proposals from the Liberal Democrats, Alliance group and Conservatives, controversial parking charge plans were scrapped as well as a new under 19s charge for the Floating Bridge.
Agreed financial plans for 2026/27 also comprise £12.9million in government Exceptional Financial Support.
Mr Quigley said the previous Conservative government forced £100million of savings on the Isle of Wight Council and mentioned a past council tax freeze implemented by Island Tories. This, he said, had reduced service provision and lowered council spending power by at least another £20million a year.
Richard has said:
“We’re starting from a place no sensible person would wish to.
“Cllr Brodie presented an alternative budget that didn’t impose cuts and didn’t impose parking charges. I was in support of that budget as it used some of those reserves to protect services and not impose car parking charges.
“It would also have funded adult social care properly. Our Portsmouth based S151 (chief financial) officer has led the proposed cuts to budgets and the emergency funding process.
“What was clear on Wednesday evening was that not all information had been shared, and information previously given had changed. So now we find ourselves in a position of borrowing £12.9m from government, with £28m in reserves and £6m of cuts.
“The amendments to avoid parking charges were welcome, but the Conservative group and the LibDems didn’t take the opportunity to be bold and stand up for Island residents.”
He said he will work with the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government (MHCLG) team that come to the Island to ‘tell us how to do it differently’.
If they find more efficient ways of operating without a reduction in services, then ‘great’, Mr Quigley added. He added:
“But I suspect they will finally understand the issue of being the only English island with one method of transport on and off is extremely costly for those of us that live here.”
Cllr Blake said:
“Councillors had a binary choice due to the situation created by the cut in funding from the Labour Government on top of the poor leadership of the last few years from the independent and Green Alliance backed by Labour and Liberal Democrats.
“We either gave ourselves a chance to transform the way the council does business or went down the route he and Cllr Brodie wanted, which would have almost certainly led to bankruptcy and the Isle of Wight Council being absorbed into a mainland-based authority.
“The situation is diabolical. The next administration has a huge task to correct the lack of leadership shown since 2021 – our schools are haemorrhaging money and are rated some of the worst in the country, the relationship with our highways contractor is so bad that government mediators have had to be brought in, and our reserve funds have dropped to bare minimum since the Conservatives left them at healthy levels of £35m.
“Mr Quigley lamenting £6m of cuts is shocking when his government have told us, with their “Fairer Funding” deal, we need to make over £50m in efficiency savings over the next three years.”
He said the Island can be much better served and its council must provide good services Islanders need at a lower cost to them.
Cllr Garratt said:
“After nearly two years of a Labour government, the hope was that the Island would get the fair deal we need and deserve, after years of Conservative government underfunding.
“Instead, Labour imposed an unfair funding review that has made the situation even worse. Councillors faced a clear choice. We could pass a responsible budget that keeps the council going, including scrapping an increase in car parking charges and rejecting a new under-19s charge for the Floating Bridge.
“Or we could adopt an alternative that would steer the council toward issuing what is known as a Section 114 notice.”
Cllr Garratt said members had heard from union representatives who warned that councils issuing Section 114 notices have seen “brutal cuts” in jobs and services.
He added that the Liberal Democrats hope Mr Quigley would want to do everything to avoid that outcome and urge him to keep his focus on getting his Labour government colleagues to recognise the Isle of Wight’s unique circumstances and give it a fair deal.
Alliance group leader, and leader of the council, Phil Jordan said:
“I want all Islanders to know that I truly understand the frustration and worry so many people are feeling right now.
“These financial pressures are real, and residents have every right to expect that their council will use every tool we have to protect the services people rely on.
“That’s why I supported the alternative proposals. They offered a fair, practical way forward – avoiding £6 million in cuts, protecting jobs, and preventing new service charges that would have placed yet more strain on Island families.
“To me, it’s plain and simple: it’s far better to use money we already have in the bank than to borrow £12.9 million from government at a time when every pound counts.”
Cllr Jordan said borrowing is not a solution but instead creates debt, future repayments, and reduces the council’s ability to invest in frontline services over the long term.
He added that ‘careful, responsible’ use of the authority’s transformation reserves allows the protection of services now without pushing extra costs onto future councils and financial challenges.
Yet we are paying failed Asylum seekers up to
£40,000.00 to leave Britain.
Enough is Enough
The chocolate teapot pops up again. Member of the peado protection party He must be the first and very last Liebor mp for the Isle of Wight.Liebor lies and protest vote got him in but the clock is ticking for him to find a new job.tik tok tick tok.
QUIGLEYS Liebor party says let’s give forty thousand pounds to ILLEGAL failed asylum seekers to go home.(plenty of cash for this policy) while squeezing British citazens more and more. The six million being taken from the Isle of Wight will fund 150 of these payouts. If you are voting Liebor hold your heads in shame.
Reserves are for emergencies and unexpected expenditure (Like fixing Undercliff Drive), not to prop up day-to-day running costs to (very) temporarily compensate for chronic underfunding.
Using reserves in that way would not meet the legal requirement to set a sustainable budget.