Redbridge Council agrees budget with maximum council tax hike

The general budget was agreed by a majority of councillors at a full council meeting on February 25, with councillors approving next year’s housing budget the same night.

In December last year, council leader Cllr Jas Athwal confirmed his vision for the borough’s public services is that they should fund themselves through “commercialisation”.

The council thus plans to cut more than £200,000 of subsidies for facilities like the Redbridge Drama and Music Centres and Fairlop Sailing Centre in the next financial year.

Overall, there are more than £9 million of savings planned for next year, which is £16 million short of the estimated amount needed, as well as a 4.99 per cent council tax increase.

Proposals from Redbridge Conservatives to cut councillor pay by 10 per cent and create a £1 million fund for green businesses were voted down by the Labour group.

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Cabinet member for finance Cllr Kam Rai said the budget’s “overall aim” was to “improve the lives of our residents and save money”.

He said: “There’s £1 million for community equipment for the vulnerable in social care, to help them extend their stay in their own homes.

“£1.2 million for leisure facilities and a new soft play area in the south of the borough. £1.5 million for the green homes scheme.

“£5 million to acquire temporary accommodation, £962,000 for rough sleepers and £3.2 million for disabled facilities.”

At a meeting on February 10, he explained that “the vast majority of London councils” would likely increase council tax by the maximum amount, including neighbouring Waltham Forest.

He told the committee at that meeting: “In the early part of this year, it looked really difficult. We saw local authorities either going to the wall or threatening to and it’s been a huge effort just to get us to this place.

“We have stuck to our guns in trying to preserve all of our services without making cuts… and we are not using reserves this year, which has been our aim for the last five years. To be able to do that this year is an amazing achievement.”

Other savings include allowing large ads on council-owned sites, selling depots like Ilford Waste Transfer Station and increasing the cost of pay and play sessions at leisure centres.

The budget also suggests “wilding” existing green spaces by letting them grow as they would naturally, which would reduce the cost of maintenance and litter-picking.

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Suggestions from the Conservative group to cut all councillor pay by 10 per cent and to create a £1 million fund to encourage businesses to be more green were voted down by the majority.

Cllr Martin Sachs (Lab, Barkingside) described the proposal for a Green Business scheme as “virtue signalling”, explaining there was already existing support of this kind.

Speaking after the meeting, Conservative leader Cllr Linda Huggett insisted the budget’s priorities “were all wrong”, arguing there should be more support for music, drama and sport.

The abrupt closure of the Fairlop Outdoor Activity Centre in mid-February has been held up by opposition councillors as an example of the cuts being made to these areas.

However, on February 26, council leader Cllr Jas Athwal insisted “there was never any intention” for this closure to be permanent and that it would reopen in April.

He said: “It’s important to remember that we had one of the highest infection rates in the country only a few months ago, meaning that we couldn’t commit to a group open sports water offer this summer for obvious public health reasons.

“We’ve thankfully witnessed a significant reduction thanks to people in Redbridge following the rules and doing everything they can to get the rates down.

“We’re committed to not only preserving sports at Fairlop but to expanding and improving the water activities on offer in the park, both in the immediate future and in the longer term.”

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