Local Government Information Unit (LGiU) Scotland and CCLA are delighted to announce that Cllr Robert Aldridge of City of Edinburgh Council has won the 2019 Councillor Award for Lifetime Contribution. Continue reading Lifetime Achievement award for local councillor
Candidates for the forthcoming Leith Walk by-election, which will take place on Thursday, 11 April, have been announced. Continue reading Leith Walk by-election candidates confirmed
A shift towards rapid rehousing will see homeless people housed in long-term and settled accommodation solutions that meets their needs as quickly as possible. Continue reading Ending Homelessness Together: Eileen Campbell launches Action Plan
A fund which supports the introduction of new walking and cycling infrastructure will be more than doubled, Transport Minister Humza Yousaf has announced. £36m will be available through the Community Links Fund in 2018/19, the highest amount since it was launched in 2010.
The fund has previously helped projects like the cycling and walking path between Elgin and Lhanbryde, a cycle path linking Glasgow City Centre with its southern suburbs, and plans to redesign Stirling Road in Dunblane.
Mr Yousaf said: “We want Scotland to be an active nation, where people lead healthier and more active lifestyles. Cyclists often tell me they want to see more safe cycling infrastructure, which I fully endorse and is one of the reasons why this is the highest amount we’ve ever invested in the Community Links Fund.
“We want this extra money to create pleasant and safe routes which make it easier for people of all ages to choose to walk and cycle as part of their everyday lives.
“This is a great opportunity for organisations to bring forward projects that will encourage people to make active travel a bigger part of their daily lives and realise the health and environmental benefits that come with it.
John Lauder, National Director for Sustrans Scotland, which delivers the fund, said: “Increasing everyday levels of active travel can hugely benefit a person’s health and wellbeing, boost local economies and create greener, more pleasant local environments to live and travel through.
“This increased funding for active travel routes from the Scottish Government demonstrates its continued commitment to creating safe and accessible walking and cycling routes across the country.
“We look forward to continuing to work in partnership with Transport Scotland, local authorities, community trusts and other partners up and down the country to help deliver the Scottish Government’s vision for an Active Nation.”
The City of Edinburgh Council’s affordable housing development in Muirhouse has been short listed in the ‘Best Social Housing Initiative’ category in the MJ Local Government Awards #MJAwards18
The city council has also received a nomination in the Innovation in Communications category.
The MJ Achievement Award winners will be announced at a gala event at London’s Hilton Hotel on Park Lane on 27 June.
Almost a billion pounds will be invested annually to fund the huge expansion of early learning and childcare, transforming the life chances of children in Scotland, the Scottish Government has announced. Continue reading Going forward together: ONE BILLION POUNDS to fund childcare expansion
Another £3 million to be cut – but Council Tax set to rise again
“That’s the real effect of cuts. In local government, you cut the people, you cut a service.”
Council tax will go up and leisure services will be cut under the city city council’s budget proposals for the coming year. The SNP – Labour ‘Capital Coalition’ administration says no jobs will be lost, but service cuts are inevitable despite a better than expected Scottish Government settlement. Trade unions say council services are being ‘silently slaughtered’ and year on year cuts threaten the council’s ability to meet its statutory duties. Continue reading Silent Slaughter: Capital braced for more council cuts
The Scottish Government says public services have been protected despite cuts to Scotland’s block grant from Westminster, but council leaders argue that councils are facing yet more damaging cuts. They can’t both be right: who’s telling the truth? Continue reading Local government funding: who do you believe?
Finance Secretary Derek Mackay has said his priority is to build Scotland’s future as he prepares to present his second Draft Budget to Parliament on Thursday. Councils across the country are braced for further cuts and it’s a ‘make or break’ Budget for local services. Continue reading A make or break Budget for local services
“Our evidence tells us that councils are finding the financial pressures increasingly difficult to manage” – Ronnie Hinds, Accounts Commission
Councils are showing increasing signs of financial stress and face even tougher challenges ahead, says the Accounts Commission. In its annual financial overview published today the local authority watchdog says funding has reduced while costs and demands have increased, and more councils are using reserves to fund services.
The Scottish Government provides around two thirds of council budgets. This fell by 5.2 per cent in 2016/17 to £9.7 billion.
2016/17 was also the last year of the council tax freeze. Council tax provides just 14 per cent of councils’ income. The report notes that if all councils chose to raise council tax by three per cent, it would yield an estimated £68 million – broadly comparable to a one per cent pay rise for staff.
Overall council debt rose by £800 million in 2016/17 as councils took advantage of low interest rates to fund projects. While not posing an immediate problem some councils are concerned about longer term affordability.
The report highlights a number of financial pressures. A rising proportion of council funding directed towards national priorities such as educational initiatives means councils have to look at deeper cuts in other services. For example, resources for culture, planning and development, and roads have seen the sharpest falls in funding over the last three years.
The report also looks at the current financial year (2017/18) where councils have approved £317 million of savings and use of £105 million in reserves. Some councils could risk running out of general fund reserves within two or three years if they continue to draw on them at current levels.
The report aims to help councils plan ahead for setting their 2018/19 budgets.
Ronnie Hinds, deputy chair of the Accounts Commission, said: “Our evidence tells us that councils are finding the financial pressures increasingly difficult to manage. The elections in May this year brought in major changes in council administrations across Scotland. Councils that have demonstrated effective leadership and robust planning will be in a better position to deal with the challenges that lie ahead.”
