Preparing for the Council Budget

The Council Budget process is about to start. Comments can be emailed to:

budget@sutton.gov.uk

A few things to note:

1. As usual the local papers will be be flannelled by the Council Press Office into writing up a "massive cuts" headline in December and will then report that "it wasn't quite so bad" in Febraury/March. How boring - maybe they can think up something counter-intuitive this year? Sutton Council's combined Education and other services budgets may cross the quarter of a billion mark for the first time. Perhaps there is a story in that as well as the predictable stuff?

2. Council Tax is likely to be a lower increase this year. With only Tories as the opposition as the Lib Dems are likely to be more cautious. Of course Tories might not be clever enough to notice that and still demand large cuts, when they are already setting the Council Tax agenda. They should continue to act as "guardians of public funds" and claim any below 4% increase a victory.

3. The Lib Dems will, if they have any sense, avoid cuts to:
a) Education - impossible to do under the finance rules and not worth winding up schools.
b) Heritage - too many elderly Tories from Cheam will turn up to Strategy so best avoided.

4. The Lib Dems may make further changes to the Play Services and thus may create some opposition.

5. It will be interesting to see if the budget assumes any cuts from the Day Services Review. Tory Councillors should ask about this issue when the scrutinise the budget.

6. I don't assume there will be a Tory budget, but they may surprise us. Just because Islington Lib Dem Steve Hitchens and his political assistant suggested one shouldn't do one, doesn't make it right. When have Tories ever listened to Lib Dem advice before!

I will of course be analysing Lib Dem proposals and costing Tory utterences, so it will be interesting to see if they keep Peter Geiringer quiet this year!