Devon council tax to rise five per cent

Opposition Labour supports Tory 'socialist' budget

Devon County Council has approved a 4.99 per cent council tax rise as part of budget proposals that assign more money for vulnerable children, adult social care, health and potholes. And the opposition Labour Party has lauded the plans as having socialist values.

More than £37 million extra includes £21.7 million for adult care and health and £11.4 million more for children’s services.

More cash goes towards treating potholes -  £600,000 - and a similar amount to help residents who have been hard hit by the pandemic.

A rise of 1.99 per cent goes toward general services and three per cent for adult care. A Band D bill will rise by £71.82 to £1,511.28 – the equivalent of £1.38 a week extra.

This is just for the Devon County Council element of council tax, and does not include amounts set by district councils or the police or fire services.

Councillors rejected an amended budget proposed by the Independent Group that would have seen only the three per cent rise in council tax for adult care charged, as well as proposals by the Liberal Democrat Group that would have seen more money taken from reserves and spent on highways, the economy and mental health.

Conservative leader of the council Cllr John Hart said: “This is a good budget for the people of Devon. It provides significant additional resources to adult social care and health, children’s services and highways, which are the things that matter most to our Devon residents.

“Caring for the elderly and disabled, children and the vulnerable are our highest priorities and we know that we have immense pressure on both our adult and children’s services and this budget means we can maintain and improve what we are offering.

“We will still support rurality, rural buses, and highways but we will also look to invest in our green agenda. We will continue to invest in LED lighting on our streetlights, saving money but also cutting our carbon emissions. There will be more charging points for electric cars, solar panels on the roofs of our buildings and we are looking for more land to plant trees to offset our carbon footprint.

“We are very conscious that many people living in Devon are on fixed and low incomes but every year we have to balance imposing more costs on them with the need to ensure our most vulnerable residents get the help and support they need and deserve and all our residents get the best services we can provide.

“Key to the authority’s financial resilience are our reserves and, compared to other county councils, Devon is just above half way in the league table. I am pleased to say that the county treasurer has again been able to confirm that our reserves are adequate. The budget does not include any addition to our reserves for next year, all available money has been used to invest in our services.

Cllr Rob Hannaford, leader of the opposition Labour group, said that they would be supporting what he called a budget with a ‘socialist vision’. He said: “It is vital that we take stock, learn lessons and look to face the future and no-one has got through this year without being touched by the impact of the pandemic, and claps on a Thursday evening don’t pay bills and it’s completely outrageous that we have been presented with a public pay freeze.

“The investment going into economic development, supporting and encouraging small businesses and enterprises, and a robust public health offer could not be more essential. We especially welcome the additional hardship funding for those who need extra help and support and the grants for community and charity groups

“As a responsible opposition after careful consideration and discussion we recognise and acknowledged this strongly, so as an investing, progressive, expanding budget, full of Labour Party values, often with a socialist vision, I can confirm, that we will be supporting and voting for the budget this year.”

But Cllr Alan Connett, leader of the Liberal Democrat Group, put forward alternative budget plans that he said: "delivers more to the people of Devon and begins the journey of recovery that our county needs."

Their plans would have seen £6.15 million used from reserves, with £3.4 million to go towards pothole repairs, and investing in cycling and walking, £500,000 for communities who want 20mph speed limits, £500,000 in a ‘Green Devon’ scheme, a £1 million fund to promote ‘Made in Devon’ and £750,000 for mental health support for children coping with lockdown.

He said: “In the news this week, we are learning that hospital admissions of nine to 12 year olds because of self-injury across the country averaging 10 a week. We need to stop and take that in. Children as young as nine are self-harming. action is needed. Our plan, to give a real boost to counselling and mental health support for children and young people is a big step in the right direction.

“In our view, the help needs to be put in place now, rather than in a year or so when the support may simply be too late for some children and young people because they will have suffered with the torments of poor mental health for some time.

Councillors voted by 43 votes to 10, with three abstentions, for the Conservative Group’s budget. The Liberal Democrats and the Independent Group voted against the budget, while the three abstentions were from Cllrs Yvonne Atkinson (Labour), Brian Greenslade (Ind) and Tony Inch (Conservative). The remaining Conservatives and Labour members voted for the budget.