The Comhairle has voted to make changes to a raft of budget cuts.
A final vote this afternoon saw a number of main changes. The new policy includes:
- Freeze council tax at the 2007/08 level of £1024 for Band D properties.
- Explore savings by switching off all street lights between and May and October. It
will consult with community councils and local groups to see if the council can switch
off other streetlights no longer required.
- Not to slash community council social grants by 50%, Instead, reduce councillors’
ward priority fund by cutting it back to £5,000 per councillor, thus saving £19,000
instead of £7,000.
- Review the loss-making Stornoway library coffee shop and offer it as a franchise
in the first instance.
- A temporary reprieve for the Hillcrest children’s care home in Stornoway. The council
intends to move all children in residential care at the Action for Children-operated
facility into foster care. The change will be deferred by a year until councillors
are satisfied by the transitional arrangements
- Opposition to slash £231,000 from road repairs and tarring has led to a proposal
to make 50% of the savings (about £115.5k) and look compensating the impact by strengthening
roads though capital works.
- Axe the council’s own concessionary fares scheme on the inter-island to save £35,000
since lower cost RET fares are now available on the routes.
- Save Stornoway abattoir - increase charges to raise a further £20,000 and set up
a working group to consider its future operation.
- Reprieve for Stornoway bus station and public toilets.. The council will review facilities
in Stornoway which would look at franchising and other solutions.
- Comhairle-run and evening bus services to continue. The council will look to make
savings within the present bus contract budget.
- Stop printing the council’s annual performance calendar but to publish it online.
Stop printing council diaries. Saves £2000 overall.
- Discuss Stornoway - Benbecula air service with Loganair with a view to revise services
and to agree - in principle - to seek prices for a number of options when seeking
tenders for the service.
Council votes for revised budget, listens to community feedback
17 February 2016