News OnTheWight always welcomes a Letter to the Editor to share with our readers – unsurprisingly they don’t always reflect the views of this publication. If you have something you’d like to share, get in touch and of course, your considered comments are welcome below.
Former Isle of Wight council cabinet member, Karl Love, who was responsible for Adult Social Care until he stepped down from the role in May 2023, shares his views on the how close he believes the council is also declaring bankruptcy. Ed
Very close, is the answer.
I have been warning for several years that we are close to the brink, with virtually nothing being delivered by government to support our Island people despite our pleas.
£100m of government grants cut from our Island budgets over 14 years of Austerity. Our government gives permission to raise local council tax by five per cent, expecting us to raise it to the full amount which raises approximately £4.4 million, but then taking away, expecting us to cut £2m from the government grant allocation.
We are not even keeping up with inflationary pressures, let alone, making any kind of advancements.
These are the cuts made in this year’s budget cuts and the same is required again in 2024. This is why we cannot keep up with inflation and are forced to cut services.
Nothing sustainable has come from the promised Billions for Adult Social Care either. I feel totally frustrated that we cannot provide the best service possible to our residents and we have been forced by this government to cut everything but the bare minimum.
Isle of Wight council and lots of other councils across the UK are running on the last remaining coppers in the piggy banks. It’s all down to the ideology of the this government’s Austerity measures.
We now wait with bated breath to see what happens in Birmingham to ascertain what our future might look like, as we unavoidably are heading in the same finical direction.
Our government promised us an Island Deal and as of yet, we have receive virtually nothing of any significance. I’m afraid £1m or £2m will not save us. We need a significant number or it’s curtains in the not too distant future.
Our government can save us if it chooses, the question is will they?
