Watford Observer Column: The disastrous Tory mini-budget will hit council services

The recent “mini-budget” unveiled by the Prime Minister Liz Truss and Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng has done huge damage to Britain’s financial credibility and spooked the markets. It aimed to reward the very richest in society at a time when everyone else will see their mortgages and general cost of living increase.

I welcome the help on energy bills but unfortunately for many this saving will be wiped out by increased mortgage costs. Incredibly, the energy scheme will all be funded by debt that we all will have to repay, rather than taxing the huge profits of oil and gas companies.

The Liberal Democrats were the first party to argue that a windfall tax on energy producers should pay for this support. This week, even the CEO of Shell, one of the companies that would be taxed, said there should be a windfall tax. If the Government had listened and produced a fully costed plan, the economic situation would not be as bad as it is now.

Unlike the Government, councils need to balance the books every year. This means finding new ways of delivering the same services with less money, identifying savings and making tough decisions about services and investment in our community. Like households across Watford, we have to deal with inflation. Now, thanks to the mini-budget, we need to worry about increasing interest rates, which affect the cost of council projects too.

In Watford we have invested wisely and attracted successful businesses to the town, meaning we are able to fund activities and services for local residents. But we will still need to make some difficult decisions in future years. Some councils are not as fortunate and nationally face a combined shortfall of £900 million. This gap will need to be filled in by large cuts to services in many places.

In November, the Chancellor will unveil a full medium term plan for the country’s finances. It is essential that he does a better job than last time.