Wyre's budget approved after full council meeting but Labour raise points

Wyre’s Council tax will rise by £6.57 in April but councillors clashed as this year’s budget was approved at full council. Coun Michael Vincent, leader of the council, said Wyre was a debt-free authority which was trusted by the people of the borough to use their money wisely. But Wyre’s Labour leader, Coun Rob Fail, said the council was not doing what it should to help tackle unemployment and problems facing those inlow income areas, which would lead to the gaps between the haves and the have nots growing. Labour also challenged the council over its plans to outsource the running of the Marine Hall in Fleetwood, arguing the council shoukld keep the facility in-house. Wyre’s budget, presented at Full Council on Thursday March 7, set out the borough’s spending plans for the year ahead.

What are the figures?

As part of the approved budget, Council Tax on a band D property will rise by £6.57 (2.99%), effectively 13p per week. Wyre collects Council Tax on behalf of several authorities that provide services in the area but its portion represents just over 10% of the total bill. Council tax bands 2024/25 will see the following rises – Band A – £1485.15; Band B – £1732.68; Band C – £1980.20; Band D – £2227.73; Band E – £2722.78; Band F – £3217.84; Band G – £3712.88; Band H – £4455.46.

What council leader said

Coun Vincent said: “By taking difficult, but sensible decisions now, we can avoid cuts to services in the future and ensure we continue to provide excellent value for money for all our residents. From April, the overall cost for our services for a Band D property will be just 62p per day, or £226.31 per year. “Over the years, we have continued to navigate challenging times shrewdly, remaining debt free, whilst introducing a new ambitious Council Plan and managing the resources needed to support its delivery. By setting a balanced budget yet again, we are demonstrating that we are delivering on our commitment to be a stable, well-run, forward-thinking council that puts customers first.” Coun Vincent said that since April 2023, Wyre had allocated nearly £1 million of Household Support Funding (HSF), helping those who had been worst affected by the increases in energy prices and cost of living pressures. The council had supported food banks in the borough, a local domestic violence charity and provided support for new school uniforms. He said: “We successfully secured £142,000 of funding for pools at Fleetwood, Poulton and Garstang leisure centres from the Government’s Swimming Pool Support Fund in November to offset energy and related costs, with more expected. “Works are almost complete on the £3.9 million improvement and decarbonisation works to Fleetwood Market and we’re progressing our vital £450m Wyre Beach Management coastal defence scheme, reducing the risk of coastal erosion and flooding to more than 11,000 properties.”

Labour leader's comments

Labour’s Coun Fail said: “This council is not spending as efficiently as it could – it must tackle unemployment and income deprivation or the gaps between the haves and have nots will grow. “There has been a managed decline in service in Wyre and the UK.” He said Wyre was sitting on £33.8m in reserves and balances, saving for a rainy day. But he added: “For many it’s already pouring down – use it for Wyre residents because once it’s gone, it’s gone for good – it will dwindle away without improving service levels.” Coun Fail said Wyre was relying too heavily on plugging gaps using the money it gained from the New Homes Bonus, a grant paid to all English authorities in recognition of net additions to effective housing stock in their area. But this had led to concerns about the scale of development in Wyre without the infrastructure always being in place to support the new homes. Coun Fail added that Wyre had wasted money on consultants who had concluded the council should outsource the running of Fleetwood’s Marine Hall and Thornton Little Theatre. He said: “Other councils have decided it’s best to bring services in house – not outsourcing them like Wyre. By being stuck in the past it has seen community groups outpriced.” But Coun Vincent said running theatres was not one of the council’s strengths – it was better to give a chance to those who could do it better.