Anyone live in Hampshire?

[SirGalahad]

Awesome news.

Tory-run Hampshire council says it faces ‘financial meltdown’

Council says without help it may be forced to make drastic cuts to local services to avoid bankruptcy

www.theguardian.com

Tory-run Hampshire council says it faces ‘financial meltdown’​

Council says without help it may be forced to make drastic cuts to local services to avoid bankruptcy

One of the UK’s largest Conservative-run councils has warned it faces “financial meltdown” and has called on ministers to fix the “broken” local government funding system to avoid it and many other authorities plunging into effective bankruptcy.

Hampshire county council said without a major overhaul of council finances in England – which it admitted was unlikely to come in time to prevent further cuts – it would be forced to push ahead with drastic reductions to local services over the next 18 months.


The council has to find £132m by April 2025 to fill a widening budget gap but has warned it cannot rely on operational cuts and council tax rises alone to balance the books without ditching “safe” levels of core service.

 

[carmanmemoranda]

If this was just 1 council in trouble you could suggest it's badly run.

For it to be the latest in a string of them it suggests the problem is further up the chain.

Who or what is above, causing this financial meltdown !

 

[JohnD]

Looks like they are no longer afraid to embarass the Tory government.

Who blamed Birmingham for being Labour-run.

 

[SirGalahad]

If this was just 1 council in trouble you could suggest it's badly run.

For it to be the latest in a string of them it suggests the problem is further up the chain.

Who or what is above, causing this financial meltdown !

Councils funding has been cut by central Government so their choices were cut services which they did or enter into hair brain schemes to raise money.

 

[ellal]

Councils funding has been cut by central Government so their choices were cut services which they did or enter into hair brain schemes to raise money.

The whole system is broken...

And deliberately so...

If the trillions given away to corporates and rich individuals were taken back there would be no funding crisis...

But that's not about to happen because those who benefit make the rules!

 

[Mottie]

Oops. Looks like I’ve accidentally popped in to an anti-Tory orgy. Talk amongst yourselves boys.

 

[transam]

no I don’t live in Hampshire

There is a council up the road that’s has gone or is going pear shaped with massive debts

 

[carmanmemoranda]

Oops. Looks like I’ve accidentally popped in to an anti-Tory orgy. Talk amongst yourselves boys.

No. Put a Tory supporting view in, if you can

 

[transam]

If this was just 1 council in trouble you could suggest it's badly run.

For it to be the latest in a string of them it suggests the problem is further up the chain.
Who or what is above, causing this financial meltdown !

Poor investments
Social care costs
Increasing older population
Migrants
To many pencil pushers and paper shufflers doing nothing of consequence (?) on high salaries
Political correctness

Usual suspects imo

 

[carmanmemoranda]

Poor investments
Social care costs
Increasing older population
Migrants
To many pencil pushers and paper shufflers doing nothing of consequence (?) on high salaries
Political correctness

Usual suspects imo

Nothing related to council funding though?

 

[Murdochcat]

The only way to resolve a lot of these under funding issues is to raise Council Tax AND the amount given to councils by central Government

Obviously that means everybody paying more Council tax and Income tax

 

[Andydevon]

Or we could just make sure if a council had x income then they could not spend more than X. Very simplistic yes but they go bust by spending money they don't have. Balancing books is not rocket science.

 

[carmanmemoranda]

Or we could just make sure if a council had x income then they could not spend more than X. Very simplistic yes but they go bust by spending money they don't have. Balancing books is not rocket science.

That choice just means no or very little services.
I'd prefer the services

 

[blup]

Or we could just make sure if a council had x income then they could not spend more than X. Very simplistic yes but they go bust by spending money they don't have. Balancing books is not rocket science.

Its more difficult than that when you have to plan ahead for services and you don't know how much money you're getting in to pay for them.

Blup

 

[Andydevon]

So simplistic approach then - if they don't know how much money they are getting in how do they know they are bust?