Argyll and Bute in new budget cuts consultation
October 3, 2011
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ARGYLL and Bute Council wants to hear from you on how best to target resources amid swingeing cuts to its annual budget.
A special consultation on the issue is due to begin next Monday, 10 October and run until 25 November.
The move comes as council leader Dick Walsh today issued a stark warning over future service provision.
Councillor Walsh conceded: “We won’t be able to provide all the services we did previously.
“We also know that there will be changes to the way other services are delivered.”
The council says it is keen to hear the views of as many people as possible before it makes its final spending decisions next February.
But it insisted that it will fight to protect frontline services by reducing budgets for “non essential functions”.
Councillor Walsh said: “We know we are going to receive less funding this year and in future years from the Scottish Government.
“This, combined with additional demand pressures from new legislation and from changes in our population, mean that we have to look long and hard at the services we offer.
“Last year was the first year we ran a budget consultation, and the feedback from communities helped us in the way we structured this year’s budget.
“This year the council will again have to take very difficult decisions regarding the way we deliver our services.
“I would encourage as many people as possible to get involved. It’s only by telling us what services are important to you that we can realise our potential together and take the decisions that will have the least impact on people’s lives.”
You can have your say online by logging on to the council’s website www.argyll-bute.gov.uk, or you can attend one of a series of Community Planning Events which are currently being organised. Suggestion postcards will also be made available from council offices.
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