The Leader of Eastbourne Borough Council, Councillor David Tutt, was in a celebratory mood last night following confirmation that radical plans to restructure Council expenditure had resulted in the 2009/2010 budget showing a £64,000 credit. The remarkable turnaround followed a budget report in October 2009 that projected a year end deficit of over £500,000.
Councillor Tutt said, “This result is a major triumph for all my Cabinet colleagues and the many excellent council officers who have implemented the changes that were needed. When we took control of the Council it’s finances did not look good and I’ve always said it would take time to stabilise the situation before we could emerge from the shadow created by an increasing deficit. Despite the impact of the recession we’ve achieved what we set out to do - we’re in credit and our reserves are healthier than ever.”
With the massive cuts being made in public sector spending to tackle the national deficit, the improved level of reserves puts the Council is a better position to deal with the inevitable impact.
Councillor Tutt said, “Based on guidance from the Audit Commission, our reserve fund should be maintained at about £2m. However, we have managed to more than double that figure to £4.676m. With the economic uncertainties as they are, I’m delighted that we have managed to create an additional buffer that will help us maintain frontline services for local residents.”
In 2009, Councillor Tutt and his colleagues in Cabinet implemented a decisive plan of intervention that delivered sweeping changes right across the authority. These included a senior management review, far reaching changes to how departments work and reductions in the costs connected to Council buildings.
Councillor Tutt added, “Some people said a balanced budget would be impossible, but our transformation programme has delivered the benefits we intended. Our new Chief Executive, Rob Cottrill, is doing a great job and as recently reported in the Herald, has appointed a superb team of senior managers. The changes we have made to the senior management structure alone have saved the Council nearly £300,000 per annum alone. We can’t be complacent, but are in much better shape now than we were when I instigated this programme of change.”
