LibDen-run Kingston Council forced through their budget at a meeting of the full Council on the 29th February 2024. The response from Conservative Councillor Ian George was as follows:
A lot of good work goes on throughout the year by staff of the Royal Borough, providing much needed services, for which we are all very thankful. We on this side are also thankful for the various budget briefings given by officers over recent weeks.
However, this budget continues last years price hikes and service cuts – despite millions of pounds of extra money from government grants and new funding.
It makes uneasy reading.
This LibDem-run council has botched and delayed its own redevelopment plans for its own buildings, losing vast amounts of projected income and savings that could have been banked by now.
On that proposed redevelopment. You have recently decided to take an important financial decision without having all of the relevant information in front of you. Selling off the Guildhall 1 building, without knowing if the proposed Guildhall extension will prove to be too expensive – or if a piece of land close-by might be much cheaper for its new office - or might end up lowering the income from the sale of Guildhall 2.
Years of inaction, followed by a huge decision that could end up costing Kingston council tax payers millions further down the line. Sounds rather like the Kingfisher Swimming Pool debacle all over again.
So this budget comes forward, in the light of that financial mismanagement, requiring unnecessary cuts to important services.
Yet again, this budget is also a full frontal assault on car drivers:
It is one thing to promote cycling and the use of public transport. A vast number of Kingston residents do cycle, do use buses and trains, but have a car too. More needs to be done by this council to help electric vehicle charging, and to maintain and clean cycle lanes.
The residents of Kingston are good people and want better air, and to use their cars less – so stop treating them like criminals. Last year car owners were unfairly targeted – and this year is more of the same.
- 15% increase in car park charges, plus a further inflation busting increase on top.
- On street parking charges up 15%, plus a further inflation busting increase.
- Forcing more CPZs so that more people have to pay to park outside their own home – and an inflation busting increase in the cost of parking permits.
- School street charging increased to raise hundreds of thousands of pounds in fines – no mention of the schools or the need, but the money is in the budget. Making money through poor signage is a proven money generator by the LibDems.
- And perhaps the worst of all - even stricter parking enforcement, so that people will face extra high fines, when they would have been allowed off for a good reason previously. A sneaky tax indeed.
You are penalising families, parents taking children or elderly relatives out, people who need a car for work, people who work antisocial or long hours and need that flexibility of owning a car, people who want the freedom to occasionally use a car – and shoppers who keep the Kingston economy afloat.
These policies are anti-family, anti-business, anti-freedom – money grabbing at its worst.
On top of that there are:
- Social Care cuts – money cut from important services without knowing if the replacement service can cope.
- More cuts to the Library service, making temporary closures permanent.
- Cuts to children's centres and youth centres
- An £18 fine for a damaged bin – almost certainly damaged by those emptying the bins.
- A massive hike in the garden waste collection service
- Cuts to the tree planting service – following previous cuts to tree maintenance
- Cuts to Air Quality service, so much for the drive for cleaner air
- Further cuts to the preservation, maintenance and cleaning of a prized asset of the Royal Borough – Kingston Ancient Market Place.
- Increased charges and income from cremations – even when dead you are taxing people more!
Kingston’s residents who pay some of the highest council tax in London and the country, deserve better.
Despite strong and continued support from the government – yet more money announced not too long ago to support our residents. This LibDem Council just blames others for their own failings.
This budget is a shambles.
