Council tax must rise to cover the escalating bill of looking after elderly people in Middlesbrough, said Mayor Ray Mallon.
The elected mayor set out his Budget proposals at a full council meeting at Middlesbrough Town Hall last night.
Among the long list of cuts and charges to generate income for the local authority, Mr Mallon recommended an up to 2% rise in council tax.
He said the move was “not popular, but it was right”.
“I have spoken about this subject in some detail over the past 12 months and have stated that 53% of our budget at present is spent on looking after children and the elderly,” he said.By 2020, he said, approximately 73% of the budget will be spent on these services.
“As you are aware, adult social health care, due to an ageing population and the rise in older people suffering from dementia, will be a particular challenge,” he said.
“That is the main reason why we must raise our council tax base by building more houses and thereby attracting more population, so that we receive higher council tax revenues and greater Formula Grant from Central Government.”
On the budget cuts overall, he said the “world of councils” changed in October 2010 when George Osborne made his comprehensive spending review speech concerning the deficit and public borrowing.
“We’re always mindful of keeping the job loss figure as low as possible,” he said.
He said that services would be affected by the continuing cuts and job losses would total 600 by 2020.
He said the management of the responsibility for the sport and leisure centres – which includes the new Sports Village – would be transferred to an external trust, saving £430,000 in 2015-16 and up to £1.66m over a full year period.
The maintenance of Stewart Park will transfer to Askham Bryan College, saving £180,000.
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