Spending cuts faced by Argyll and Bute Council won’t be as bad as predicted – but the authority still faces savings of up to £26m.
Two months ago the council warned that its funding gap could total £37.5m, with some departments facing cuts of 25%.
Today (Monday) the council said its latest budget estimates put saving targets at between £21.7m and £26m, meaning annual savings of £9m for the next two financial years.
Decisions on where the axe will fall will now be later than expected, with consultation before final confirmation in January.
Services for the elderly and disabled, libraries and music tuition have all been highlighted as being at risk.
Many staff are expected to face redundancy – but the council also plans to create seven new jobs to try and regenerate the area.
Council leader Dick Walsh said: Achieving the significant level of savings that we must will impact on our employees and on the work we are able to do for our communities.
“We are focused clearly therefore on delivering enough savings, but no more than enough.
‘’A lot of work has been done to identify options to explore in making savings. We have identified more potential options than the council will need to take.”
The council also plans to continue centralisation by taking income from council tax on empty homes away from its area committees.
An extra £300,000 will be spent on economic development, with new staff focussing on regeneration, business growth, transport, digital connections, and marketing.
Policy lead for economic development Aileen Morton said: ‘This targeted investment in intended to help to build on the work already being done to drive forward economic development and prosperity.”
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