Council Budgets

Let’s face the facts, it’s not actually a council budget but rather a Government one. As per my letter of a few weeks ago, the single biggest factor is social care, the next is waste. The first is statutory but uncontrollable as inflation and the actual numbers needing this service is only guesswork when setting a budget. The second, for West Berkshire Council, is stuck in a Private Funding Initiative (PFI) contract which has 8 plus years left to run. PFI contracts have been amongst the worst types of contracts, and no one today would even consider them. FYI West Berkshire’s is amongst the most expensive waste service in the country for residents. Who suggested they were a good idea? That would be central government. Central Government also encouraged councils to play the property market. This created a situation where they were competing against each other. The summary of that for many councils is that they bought high and are now selling low.

You will all have seen the Conservative's announcement of extra funding for councils. This is just a small sticking plaster. At the time of writing, we don’t know how much West Berks or Reading will get from this. Therefore, the councillors and officers must guess the number whilst trying to figure out what can be cut to afford the mandatory things. Add to that the accounting tricks which allow capital receipts to be used as revenue, means the real problems do not get fixed. This constant kicking down the road of funding for local services will come back to hurt us.

We need some different types of MP. Not career politicians, but people who bring their careers to politics. People who have lived in the real world, not one of theory.

I’m currently meeting all councils in Reading West and Mid Berkshire to compile a list of priorities the MP should be dealing with in the Constituency. If you would like to share your thoughts, just go to Https://adrianabbs.uk/Constituency-Ideas. I’ve committed to hand it all over to whoever wins at the general election, whether it’s me or not.

Adrian Abbs

Independent Candidate

Reading West & Mid Berkshire constituency.