Council tax to rise by 3.5pc
9:50am Thursday 21st February 2013 in News
Residents in Bury face a 3.5 per cent council tax rise.
And part of the council ranger service will be saved, under plans revealed at Bury’s Council’s budget meeting last night.
Rents for Six Town Housing tenants are also set to increase by an average of 4.1 per cent.
Council leader Mike Connolly last night unveiled the extent of the budget costs and cuts at Bury town hall, for which savings of around £10.4 million had to be made for 2013/14.
Two ranger posts will be saved, with a view to being self-funded in 2014/15, and there will be no cuts to the street cleaning service.
Previous proposals had threatened the loss of all eight ranger posts.
Cllr Connolly said: “Following our Plan for Change consultation, we have listened to what people have said. We are keeping two ranger posts to deal with volunteers and income generation.
“We recognise the strength of feeling and the valuable work they do.”
The 3.5 per cent council tax rise - which includes the levies for police, fire, waste and transport - is the first increase in three years and on a par with some other Greater Manchester authorities, such as neighbouring Bolton.
Cllr Connolly continued: “By setting this council tax figure, we are protecting services and protecting the budget from service cuts.
“We are working in line with the guidelines of the Department for Communities and Local Government as outlined by Eric Pickles.”
The proposed tax hike will mean Band A residents currently paying £971 will rise to £1005: an extra £34 per year.
For Band D, it will rise from £1,456 to £1,507: an increase of £51 per year.
He also urged people to support the “Fair Deal for Bury” campaign as the council already faces further cuts in excess of seven per cent for next year.
Cllr Connolly added: “Bury is disadvantaged by the formula worked out by the Government, and all we are calling for is some equanimity and to be treated fairly. Bury people should not have to suffer bigger cuts than others.”
Comments(9)
Babbar Divino
says...
8:37pm Fri 22 Feb 13
imnobody wrote:"And for those who are lucky not to be employed by the Council"
Does this now mean that Mr Connolly is to “unfreeze” the pay structure that is in place and support the workforce of the Council with the “inline” pay raises to which has been frozen for over the past three years?
Is Mr Connolly also going to give back the employees of Bury Council the three days unpaid leave to which he has been taking off them for over the last three years.
If you wish to increase Council Tax you will also need to increase wages to enable the increase to be paid.
And for those who are lucky not to be employed by the Council, are they going to get the standard of service back that is paid for, to which has not been up to full standard since the Council started making cuts in the services which the Tax payer has still paid full price….
.
It's a free country mate. You can always resign?
sense2
says...
12:47pm Mon 25 Feb 13
new_lizard
says...
12:58pm Mon 25 Feb 13
Babbar Divino
says...
7:03pm Mon 25 Feb 13
sense2 wrote:Careful sense2. That's a bit close to the bone :)
Why is there no mention of reducing staff levels as other councils seem to do.I know this is not popular but if private industry had to save money this is the first thing they would look at.Also pensions should be cut to levels that are paid to people doing similar jobs in the private sector.The days of council staff being paid far less than these people have long gone and perks should be reduced accordingly.Any other organisation cutting services would have to reduce what it charges and the council should be no different.
Babbar Divino
says...
7:04pm Mon 25 Feb 13
new_lizard wrote:You could always take up the 365 paid leave positions open?
the only perk we have is the three unpaid days leave
BuryB&B
says...
12:24pm Thu 28 Feb 13
http://www.bbc.co.uk
/news/uk-politics-21
611255
Rubish
says...
12:50pm Thu 28 Feb 13
Buryite1
says...
6:00pm Wed 6 Mar 13
sense2 wrote:Staffing levels have been reducing steadily for years. I know this because I used to work in partnership with Bury Council peers from time to time. Re. pensions - I wouldn't call £4,500 PA after 25 years' service 'gold plated' - would you? Strangely enough, public sector workers pay taxes as well, and those working for local authorities are paid some of the lowest salaries in the public sector.
Why is there no mention of reducing staff levels as other councils seem to do.I know this is not popular but if private industry had to save money this is the first thing they would look at.Also pensions should be cut to levels that are paid to people doing similar jobs in the private sector.The days of council staff being paid far less than these people have long gone and perks should be reduced accordingly.Any other organisation cutting services would have to reduce what it charges and the council should be no different.
Also - my colleagues and I were consistently paid far less than comparable jobs in the private sector. The main reason for my working within the public sector was to do just that - provide as good a service as possible to my local community. Before making these comments, please do some research and base your arguments on facts....are we on a 'race to the bottom' again?
imnobody says...
1:23pm Thu 21 Feb 13
Is Mr Connolly also going to give back the employees of Bury Council the three days unpaid leave to which he has been taking off them for over the last three years.
If you wish to increase Council Tax you will also need to increase wages to enable the increase to be paid.
And for those who are lucky not to be employed by the Council, are they going to get the standard of service back that is paid for, to which has not been up to full standard since the Council started making cuts in the services which the Tax payer has still paid full price….