Council debt slashed under Mayor Dave’s leadership

In the latest Budget announcement, it was revealed that the Council's external debt has continued to fall over the past year from £69 million to £65.7 million. This is another huge reduction from the £90.7 million of debt that the administration inherited when the Council became a unitary authority in April 2009, just before Mayor Dave Hodgson was first elected. Mayor Dave said "When I was first elected it was so frustrating to find that we had a huge amount of money tied up in interest payments and debt repayments. We have been managing our debt level by making savings wherever we can whilst still maintaining quality services and limiting borrowing. Less debt means we have more funding for projects that matter to residents, such as tackling climate change, investing in our town centres and protecting green spaces. This is fantastic progress in very difficult circumstances."

The reduction in debt is even more striking when compared with neighbouring Conservative-run Central Bedfordshire Council. Bedford Borough Council's proportion of the Budget spent on debt is 4.0% and is forecasted to stay at this level in 2024/25. In contrast Central Bedfordshire will spend 6.3% of their Budget on debt and this figure is forecasted to rise further to 7.5% in 2024/25. This means the Conservative-run Central Bedfordshire Council will spend over 50% more on debt as a proportion of the total Budget compared to the Liberal Democrat-run Bedford Borough Council.

Portfolio Holder for Finance Councillor Michael Headley said "It is important that we continue to keep debt under control. Less debt and interest payments means more funding for services and investment projects for our residents. We have managed to do this whilst recovering from a financial crisis, dealing with Brexit and the pandemic and experiencing severe government cuts to funding."