Tories attack ‘vanity budget’ as they try to halt council tax rise

The Conservative opposition is attempting to thwart a 2.9 per cent increase in council tax bills in the new financial year which has already been agreed by the Labour cabinet.

An amendment has been put forward by the Tories in the hope that a freeze on bills will be instigated by accepting a one-off grant from Westminster aimed at preventing any rises.

The leader of the council’s Conservative group, Coun Ian Gillies, has accused his Labour rivals of pursuing a “vanity budget” which is aimed simply at proving a point to the coalition Government by not accepting the grant.

Coun Gillies said: “It is the public who are caught in the middle of all this political manoeuvring. Hard-working families in York, who are in the same financial position as many others across the country, are being asked to fund a council tax rise when they simply should not have to.

“I do feel that this is simply a budget based on vanity as Labour wishes to prove a point to central government, which is not fair on the taxpayer.”

The Labour administration unveiled its budget plans earlier this month which saw the council become the latest authority to rebel against the Government and push ahead with a tax rise.

The 2.9 per cent increase in the council’s share of the tax bill will mean the cost of a Band D property would rise by 61p a week to a total of £1,122.48 per year.

Local Government Minister Bob Neill branded the move as an “incredibly inconsiderate decision” and claimed the one-year grant of nearly £2m for York would have given an annual saving to the city’s residents of as much as £68.

A council meeting will be held on Thursday to decide whether the financial blueprint should be adopted after senior councillors on the cabinet have already given their approval.

The amendment put forward by the Conservatives is also calling for a re-think on a proposed increase on parking charges.

But council leader James Alexander launched a staunch defence of his budget plans and accused the Tories of being “addicted to cuts”.

Coun Alexander maintained the Labour administration is committed to kick-starting the city’s economy via a £28.5m fund aimed at attracting new enterprise over the next five years.

He added: “The council tax increase is about stability for residents and the protection of essential services in the face of unprecedented Government cuts, not playing politics as Ian Gillies suggests.

“He has also been unable to understand that our £28.5m Economic Infrastructure Fund is targeted at economic growth and job creation.

“The clue is in the title. Either that or he wants to tell people it is something it isn’t, which isn’t helpful to people’s understanding of the council’s finances and the budget process.”

The Labour administration has taken an unprecedented step in the city by drafting a blueprint for the next two financial years instead of the normal 12-month plan. It will involve cuts totalling £19.7m over the 24-month period on annual operating costs of about £124m.

Up to 100 job losses will be lost in 2012/13 with a similar number due to be axed during 2013/14 – on top of the 170 posts which are going in this financial year.

Coun Alexander stressed most would be achieved through voluntary redundancies, although he admitted some compulsory job losses will have to enforced.

The proposed budget will also see grants cut for the York Museums Trust and York Theatre Royal and reductions in services including street cleaning. However, there will be an annual increase of £1.5m for adult social care and £500,000 for children’s social care to protect the vulnerable.

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