Highland Council opposition leader believes cuts are a done-deal
The leader of Highland Council’s opposition group, Carolyn Wilson, believes the administration will go ahead with all of its proposed budget cuts regardless of how much opposition there is from the public.
Schools could close, school days could be shortened and at least 1,000 of the council’s 17,000 staff, including 50 secondary school teachers, could lose their jobs as the authority seeks to save £64 million from its budget over the next four years.
Some libraries, swimming pools and museums could also close and the region could be hit with a "tourist bedroom tax" imposing a levy at hotels and guest houses with a fee of £1 per room per night being used to pay for the infrastructure used by holiday makers.
The controversial proposals have surfaced in a public consultation document, available online or at a council service point.
However, Councillor Wilson believes decisions have already been made and the consultation is a "paper exercise".
She said: "They are going through the motions of just ticking boxes. Regardless of how people answer those questions and the outcome of that consultation, I believe every one of those cuts will go through. They have got a political administration that has got an SNP majority and they are whipped and they are voting to a man and a woman with this a come November."
But Richard Laird, deputy leader of the SNP group, said the cuts were being forced upon the local authority.
And budget leader Councillor Maxine Smith said the suggestion was "ridiculous" and a moved to reassure the public that their suggestions would be carefully considered when the consultation closes later this month.
Over the past five years the council has already made more than £77 million of savings from its £570 million budget.
This included shedding 44 management posts to save £3.25 million.
The public consultation document unveiled this week identifies savings totalling more than £15million. The council believes the remaining funds can be found through efficiency and other means which are deemed to have less impact on front line services.
However, if the cuts identified in the public consultation go ahead, nearly £3 million would be slashed from the charity High Life Highland, which runs the council’s libraries, swimming pools, museums and other leisure and cultural services.
Ian Murray, High Life Highland’s chief executive, said facilities would close and people would lose their jobs.
