Islington Council’s 2016/17 Budget Announced

On Tuesday 12th January, Islington Council’s proposed budget for 2016/17 was published. You can find out more about the budget here.

The Tory Government has already cut Islington Council’s funding in half since 2010, meaning the Council has had to make savings of around £150 million in the last 5 years. However, the recently announced Comprehensive Spending Review will see yet more cuts to Islington, meaning that by 2020 the Council will have lost more than 70% of our Government funding in 10 years. 

Cllr Richard Watts, Leader of Islington Council, explains more about a budget that, despite massive Government cuts, protects vital frontline services and makes a difference in tackling the issues that matter to our borough. 

A budget to protect Islington – Cllr Richard Watts, Leader of Islington Council

Today we have announced proposals for Islington Council’s budget for the year ahead.

This year’s budget is one that protects Islington and prioritises the future of young people in our borough.

The council I lead is committed to making a difference on the issues that matter to us all. The increase in serious youth violence in the past year has been extremely troubling. Three teenagers have lost their lives in Islington after being stabbed in 2015, and we are not going to sit back and see this continue.

This budget will -;

• spend an extra £500,000 on additional support for young people most at risk of turning to gangs and crime.

• protect existing budgets for youth work and maintain the Islington Bursary to help disadvantaged young people go to college.

• protect libraries, care for older people, and other vital services.

This budget will help to protect young people and help tackle youth crime, as well as continuing to defend the services we all rely on.

However, this investment in protecting Islington is made all the more difficult by the continued cuts from the Tory Government to the council’s funding.

The council’s Government funding has already been cut in half since 2010, and by 2020 the council will have lost a massive 70 per cent of its Government funding. Again, the Tories have hit inner city areas, like Islington, harder than leafier areas of the country.

That means that we have been forced yet again to make some difficult decisions in this year’s budget. For example, Council Tax will rise by 1.99 per cent and we will have to start charging for bulky waste collection from street properties as other London boroughs do.  

Despite the challenges we face, an Islington Labour run Council will continue to make a difference on the things that matter.