Spend property cash on services say Lib Dems, as Surrey County Council heads towards £19 MILLION overspend
Liberal Democrat county councillors have criticised Surrey County Council's plan to set aside income derived from property acquisitions into further property speculation rather than investing in services. According to the latest budget figures, the County Council is facing an overspend of £19 million in the current financial year but is planning to set aside £3.8m of income generated from property to invest in more property, rather than take the pressure off council services which are facing cuts of £104 million pounds this year.
Cllr Hazel Watson, Leader of the Liberal Democrats on Surrey County Council, said today:
"The Conservative Administration at County Hall has said all along that the reason we are investing millions in commercial property across the country is to generate revenue which will protect council services in the future. Given the huge cuts that the Conservatives are making this year, I am surprised to see income from the Council's property investments being set aside for more property investment rather than alleviating the huge financial strain on vital services to Surrey residents.
"Millions of pounds worth of cuts have been made by this Conservative Administration to services for vulnerable and disabled adults, people with learning disabilities, community recycling centres, street lights and there is much more to come. I am calling for the Conservative Administration to put this money into protecting services for Surrey residents, rather than investing more public money in commercial property hundreds of miles from Surrey."
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The latest Budget Monitoring report can be found here (p23):