Thought you’d like to see the EDP (Shaun Lowthorpe) response to Daniel Cox’s budget speech yesterday:
Norfolk firms are to be helped with a £627,000 cash boost after county council leader Daniel Cox unveiled a budget pledging to help businesses weather the recession.
The Conservative administration yesterday raised council tax bills by 2.95%, the second lowest hike in 13 years, in a budget pledging to give more to ‘big ticket’ services while also cutting costs.
That will see average band D bills rise an extra £33.22 a year, or 62p a week, to £1,123.74.
But in a move which appeared to catch opposition councillors off-guard he also pledged to direct £627,000 of local government business initiative grant (LABGI) to help firms locally.
Critics have warned the spending plans would hit services for the vulnerable because of the cuts involved in areas such as the learning difficulties budget, and have urged the Tories to raid the reserves to provide more help.
But Mr Cox said his plans were designed to keep tax levels below inflation, get the most out of services, help Norfolk weather the storm, and take advantage of any upturn when it comes.
And he said that despite the vagaries of the national economic climate and the “twists and turns” of the controversial local government review, the council had not lost any focus on its day to day job and had continued its improvement in delivering high quality services.
“One of my objectives for this budget is to help Norfolk during the recession and build more resilience to cope with what may arise as a consequence of the worsening economic downturn,” he said. “We are particularly keen to help small businesses and the many more people for whom debt and money management is now a relentless, grinding headache.
“We want to help people who have lost jobs find new ones as quickly as possible, and support the agencies who provide invaluable support services and who are struggling to cope with the increase in demand.”
The so-called LABGI cash includes:
£280,000 to be spent on small building maintenance schemes provided by Norfolk based companies.
£200,000 for a two-year support scheme for people made redundant who cannot access other government support schemes.
£125,000 to fund extra Citizen’s Advice Bureau debt advisors.
£20,000 to promote help available locally to help businesses.
Mr Cox added: “This council will do its utmost to support our business leaders and I am clear one of the best ways of doing this is to retain a firm focus on investment in the infrastructure, skills and support elements necessary to fulfil shared ambitions for Norfolk.”
In a wide-ranging reply, Labour leader Sue Whitaker, who proposed a 0% council tax rise based on a series of budget raids, began with an end-of-term report on the Tories’ period in office. But despite Labour calling for more urgent measures to help firms last week, she did not propose similar changes in her alternative budget.
The Greens called for a new resilience fund to help tackle local economic, community and environmental problems.
And Lib Dem leader Paul Morse, who also called for more cash to support an increase in financial advisor numbers and a rural revival fund to help country communities, accused the Tories of stealing some of his group’s initiatives.
These included putting extra cash to fund rural fire cover, new measures to promote community-based “restorative justice”, and a beefed up County Hall work experience scheme for youngsters.
“Given Daniel’s willingness to accept our ideas and the problems he has had with the Tory grandees, I wondered if he might like to cross the chamber and become and official Liberal Democrat!” he said.
But Mr Cox declined the offer. “Not least because of getting splinters from sitting on the fence, I have trouble looking both ways at the same time,” he said.
