Southampton sets "shameful" budget in "challenging" times
Council tax will increase by 4.99 per cent
Critics are accusing Southampton City Council of giving approval to the "most shameful" budget ever presented.
Council tax will increase by 4.99 per cent, the maximum amount allowed without a referendum.
It means a Band D home will face a £1,812.69 bill in April for 2024/25.
Council tax premiums will also increase for empty properties for 12 months or more in 2024/25 and second homes from 2025/26.
The now-approved Southampton City Council budget for 2024/25 was balanced thanks to the exceptional financial support approved by central government last week.
The council plans to spend £595m next year on local services, excluding housing.
The budget was dubbed the "most shameful" by opposition councillors.
Leader of the council, Cllr Lorna Fielker, highlighted the "challenging" position but praised the commitment of her administration to make the budget proposal work.
Cllr Fielker said: "This Labour administration seeks to always be honest with residents about what is happening in the council.
"It is really important for us to do that. We don’t want to hide behind anything.
"There is no doubt this is a very challenging budget for us. We know why we are here, and we know where we need to go.
"The budget has been set based on robustness.
"This labour administration is committed to putting in the work to enable that to happen."
However, the leader of the Conservatives, councillor Daniel Fitzhenry, criticised the situation where the council is, indicating that the situation "wasn’t inevitable" and "didn’t need to happen."
Under his plans, if elected in 2022, his administration would have developed a plan to tackle what was "clearly obvious", the structural deficit.
Cllr Fitzhenry said: "We would have never, ever been in this scenario you are in right now.
"This situation we find ourselves in was not a necessity, it was not even an option.
"And here you are, accepting £121 million on the credit card at five to six per cent per annum.
"None of the interest charges are in your budget, so your budget gap for next year is not £40 million, which is £42 million, probably if you borrow all the money.
"God forbid your Labour government because you are going to find yourselves in a very bad position. This scenario is on your own making … It is a very shameful place to be as a council."
The budget was carried out without the support of the Green Party and the Conservative Party.