Glasgow's Budget Gap
According to recent reports, Glasgow City Council is facing a budget gap of £142 million over the next three years.
Now this has big implications for local services, as well as the council's commitment to equal pay which requires Glasgow to replace its WPBR pay scheme, condemned as 'unfit for purpose' by the Court of Session, Scotland's highest civil court.
Here's what the local Unison branch secretary, Brian Smith, had to say to Glasgow's elected councillors on behalf of the joint trade unions.
Dear Glasgow City Councillor,
Glasgow Council Budget
The joint trade unions received a briefing this morning from senior council officers on the council budget.
We were informed that the council is planning for “budget gaps” of £51M in 2020/21; £44M in 2021/22; and £47M in 2022/23. A combined gap of £142M over the three years. This is on top of around £400M in cuts to jobs and services in the last decade. This cannot go on.
The people of Glasgow, the services which they rely on and the workers who provide them are not to blame for the austerity politics of successive national governments or the decisions of previous Glasgow administrations to continuously defend gender pay inequality.
A new pay and grading scheme to eliminate the scandal of gender pay inequality in our city will also be implemented over this period. The trade unions are clear that this will require significant additional year-on-year revenue funding. The trade unions will fight using any means necessary to ensure this is delivered.
The trade unions have continually opposed the passing on of Tory cuts and believe that the anti-austerity mandate which Glasgow, and indeed Scotland’s, politicians have should be used to ensure no more cuts in council jobs and services. Much more could be done in the short term to hold off further cuts via borrowing powers, through the refinancing of PFI/PPP deals, by the use of reserves and by the Scottish Government using its tax raising powers more progressively. This would not be a panacea but a tactic to protect services whilst fighting for more money and revenue raising powers.
The joint trade unions received a briefing this morning from senior council officers on the council budget.
We were informed that the council is planning for “budget gaps” of £51M in 2020/21; £44M in 2021/22; and £47M in 2022/23. A combined gap of £142M over the three years. This is on top of around £400M in cuts to jobs and services in the last decade. This cannot go on.
The people of Glasgow, the services which they rely on and the workers who provide them are not to blame for the austerity politics of successive national governments or the decisions of previous Glasgow administrations to continuously defend gender pay inequality.
A new pay and grading scheme to eliminate the scandal of gender pay inequality in our city will also be implemented over this period. The trade unions are clear that this will require significant additional year-on-year revenue funding. The trade unions will fight using any means necessary to ensure this is delivered.
The trade unions have continually opposed the passing on of Tory cuts and believe that the anti-austerity mandate which Glasgow, and indeed Scotland’s, politicians have should be used to ensure no more cuts in council jobs and services. Much more could be done in the short term to hold off further cuts via borrowing powers, through the refinancing of PFI/PPP deals, by the use of reserves and by the Scottish Government using its tax raising powers more progressively. This would not be a panacea but a tactic to protect services whilst fighting for more money and revenue raising powers.
The trade unions also believe that the current Scottish local government funding arrangements disadvantage Glasgow. The multi-faceted impacts on council services of higher levels of poverty and the city status of Glasgow are not sufficiently recognised at present.
We therefore once again call on you to resist further cuts in the council’s budget.
We also request a meeting with each political group to discuss the above matters and hope to hear from you.
Regards,
Brian Smith, on behalf of the joint trade unions
UNISON Branch Secretary
We therefore once again call on you to resist further cuts in the council’s budget.
We also request a meeting with each political group to discuss the above matters and hope to hear from you.
Regards,
Brian Smith, on behalf of the joint trade unions
UNISON Branch Secretary
