Mayor Dave - Further Huge Reduction in Council's Funding Highlights Need to Keep up Fight To Save Services

Mayor Dave Hodgson has said that the recent confirmation of a further huge reduction in the Council's funding is evidence of the importance of the ongoing fight to save services which he is leading at Bedford Borough Council. While communities across the country have seen the loss of libraries, leisure centres, children's centres, weekly bin collections and more, under Mayor Dave Bedford Borough Council has bucked the trend and saved key services on behalf of the community despite unprecedented cuts in funding.

Mayor Dave's response to news that the Council's main government grant will have been cut by 33% within two years in April - from £42 million down to £28 million - is to stress his commitment to keeping up the fight to save front line services, while keeping council tax bills down for local households.

Mayor Dave said: "This latest announcement continues the trend of sharply reduced Local Authority funding and highlights the need to fight for local services. Over the past two years the 33% reduction in the main government grant has taken £13million from the budget to provide these services.'

"We've identified savings and introduced new ways of working to make sure our budget is balanced while prioritising front-line services and keeping council tax down for local households. This announcement is further evidence that this task is only set to go on being an extraordinarily tough one, and must remain absolutely central for the Council."

Liberal Democrat Finance Portfolio Holder for the Council, Cllr Michael Headley, added: "Unlike many other Council's we've protected key services like libraries, leisure sites, weekly waste collections and children's centres. These services are vital for our community. Despite the pressure of further cuts in funding we will continue to do everything possible to protect them while freezing council tax rates for local residents."