This year’s budget papers will be published in full by the time of the next Annual Budget Meeting, which will be debated at Hammersmith Town Hall on 25th February 2009. You’re welcome to attend as these are public meetings - then you can make your own mind up as to what’s happening with the borough’s finances.Below are the cuts to front line services that were agreed by a majority Conservative vote last February:• Total cuts to care services for elderly, sick and disabled residents £2,804,000.00• Cut to environment, highways maintenance budget £1,633,000.00• Confirmed a reconsidered cut to street cleaning and refuse collection budgets £980.000.00• Cut to environmental public protection & safety budget £687,000.00• New income from events in parks and public spaces £200,000.00• Cuts to the planning department £562,000.00• Total cuts to the play and youth service £500,000.00• Cut to the Foster Care Service £180,000.00• Cut to high maintenance care for elderly, sick and disabled residents £100,000.00 • Growth in parking suspension income £550,000.00• Additional cuts to libraries services £200,000.00• Cut to mental health day care facilities £100,000.00• Cut children’s discretionary educational grants £90,000.00If you cut and paste the link below you can view the Council’s own budget papers for last year:http://www.lbhf.gov.uk/Images/Council%20270208_tcm21-93994.pdfOn page 42 you will see that H&F Council is making £36,335,000.00 worth of cuts - which they list as "efficiencies" - and are mostly targeted at essential services. For that you will see on page 37 that the tax reduction for this year was actually £20.74 per year in total. This is after the GLA subsidy which includes money for the Metropolitan Police and other services.However, much of the £20.74 has been taken back by the Council using stealth taxes. These include brand new charges to residents e.g. the Garden Waste Service at £7.25 and the new home help charge for the elderly, sick and disabled at £12.40 per hour. Or increases well above inflation for current charges such as Meals on Wheels at 40% - which is a £365 increase per annum; or parking charges which increased by £12.5%. As you can see some people are much worse off and many of those would be classed as the poorest or most vulnerable of our borough neighbours.Hope this helps.RegardsCllr. Stephen CowanLeader of the OppositionThe London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham
Stephen Cowan ● 6102d