Brighton and Hove councillors rebel over budget plans

A debate on Brighton and Hove's budget ended in stalemate on Friday

Six members of Brighton and Hove's ruling Green Party are set to vote
against their party's planned cuts.

A six-hour budget debate on the Green Party's plans to increase council tax by
5.9% ended in stalemate on Thursday.

Brighton's Labour group has proposed a 1.99% rise and the council's
Conservative members want a council tax freeze.

The Green Party says the city is set to lose £18m in government funding in the
2015-16 financial year.

Cuts 'savage'

Councillor Ollie Sykes, The Green Party's finance lead said: "Council services
are already under huge pressure.

"The predicted combination of increased demand and reduced funding means

savings of £102m are needed over the next five years. This is on top of £77
million already taken out over the last four years."
Green councillor Ruth Buckley, deputy leader of the council, said: "Many
residents don't agree with austerity measures and as such we are exercising
our democratic mandate to say no to these savage cuts."

Fellow Green councillors Rob Jarrett, Mike Jones, Phelim Mac Cafferty, Alex
Philips and Liz Wakefield have also all vowed to vote against any cuts to the
city's budget when it is discussed later.

The authority said a council tax rise of 1.99% would mean cuts of £26m would
need to be made in 2014-15.

Under government rules authorities that want to increase council tax by more
than 2% must hold a local referendum.
Brighton and Hove council tax rise is a 'compromise'

The council encountered a similar problem setting the council tax in 2014

Council tax in Brighton and Hove will rise by 1.99% after a Green Party
plan to raise it by 5.99% failed.

The agreement earlier between the minority Green administration and the
Labour group followed a six-hour debate on Thursday, which ended in
stalemate.

Any rise over 2% would have triggered a local referendum on the issue. The
Conservatives wanted the council tax to be frozen.

Council leader Jason Kitcat said: "It wasn't our preferred option."

He added: "We found a compromise - we've been able to find a joint

amendment that covers areas of common interest around children centres,
tree planting and third sector grants.

"We're able to offer something of benefit in this compromise."

'No necessity'
The council encountered the same problem in 2014, with the Greens wanting
a large increase before settling on 1.99%.

The Greens had previously said the city would lose £18m in government
funding this year and the proposed 5.99% council tax rise would help "protect
services for the elderly, adults in care, children and those living below the
poverty line".

Speaking after the meeting, Labour councillor Warren Morgan said: "It was our
aim all along to set a budget at an affordable rate and protect funding for
children centres, for voluntary sector groups , for domestic violence funding
and more, and we've achieved that."

However, Conservative councillor Geoffrey Theobald said: "There's no

necessity to be increasing council tax.

"Even worse for our citizens that, whereas we were freezing car parking
charges, they are not and consequently they are going up."