The pressure of delivering a £212 million spending cuts package in a single year has re-opened simmering tensions between scrutiny committees and Birmingham City Council’s executive cabinet, reports Public Affairs Correspondent Paul Dale
Politicians from across the party divide have expressed frustration at a lack of detailed information setting out exactly how Birmingham’s cabinet intends to tackle a potential £50 million budget deficit.
Finance scrutiny committee members complained that they could not hold the executive to account properly, or add value by suggesting ways of delivering more efficient services, because they are not receiving up to date budget forecasts.
After grilling corporate finance director Jon Warlow for an hour, councillors demanded changes to ensure that they receive estimates of progress against spending cuts targets as soon as information is available, rather than waiting for several weeks until cabinet members have pondered over the details.
It has emerged in recent weeks that the council’s finances are at risk of slipping about £37 million into the red if corrective action is not taken.
The figure consists of £14 million potential overspending on departmental budgets and a £23 million shortfall on delivering £212 million of Government cuts.
Most of the shortfall stems from adults and children’s social care, where demand for services is fast outstripping resources.
Adults social services risk slumping £17.5 million into the red after a cuts plan based on ending care packages for 4,000 disabled people was declared unlawful.
Fresh consultation into the future of social care packages has begun, but the cabinet is yet to explain how the £17.5 million gap will be closed.
The children’s department is struggling to identify £4 million in savings after cuts to home to school transport were scrapped by cabinet member Les Lawrence, who said the proposal would have had a “devastating” impact on thousands of disabled children and their families. Coun Lawrence is promising to find savings from elsewhere in his portfolio, but has given no details of how this will be achieved.
A further deterioration in the city’s finances means that the true overall projected deficit could jump to more than £50 million, although leaders of the Tory-Liberal Democrat coalition say they are confident of balancing the books and meeting spending cut targets.
The scrutiny committee heard there was a “high risk” that Birmingham’s 10 devolved constituency committees will not deliver £10.7 million in savings.
Two months into the financial year the committees, which run local libraries, sports centres and parking, are overspending by £2.1 million and have launched a fast-track review of future service delivery.
The review could prove embarrassing for the coalition, which has made great play of not closing a single library, museum or leisure centre.
Opposition councillors fear “cuts through the back door” with reduced opening hours for services rather than wholesale closure.
There is also uncertainty over the likelihood of a £10 million social services rescue package from NHS health trusts being delivered.
