COUNCIL tax payers in Waverley will pay an average of 3.9 per cent more in the coming financial year, according to the final figures agreed on Tuesday night. The full Waverley Borough Council met to discuss its budget and the final council tax figure for 2005/2006 was agreed, including the borough council's own demand, which will rise by 4.9 per cent - well above the rate of inflation. At the meeting, the deputy leader of the council, Gillian Ferguson, who later in the meeting was elected leader, explained that Waverley fully understands that there has been a steady increase, above inflation, in council tax in recent years. Also that council tax payers - the residents of Waverley - expect the council to try very hard to avoid any increase over the rate of inflation. She continued: "However, in view of the underlying financial pressures on Waverley, we are proposing an increase of 4.9 per cent - a combination of an increase in the level of inflation plus the amount by which the government has failed to increase our grant. "The government, despite our representations, confirmed its pre-Christmas intentions and short changed Waverley's Revenue Support Grant against inflation by £110,000. "Despite all the hard work reducing the potential £1m deficit which we started our budget setting with, this settlement would leave us with a continuing shortfall of almost £500,000 were council tax to be increased by only inflation." She added: "Even with this increase, our expenditure exceeds our income by £650,000. We are therefore drawing this amount from the revenue reserve while acknowledging future financial pressures." The 4.9 per cent increase will mean a council tax to cover Waverley Borough Council's spending of £138.78 for an average Band D council tax payer - an increase of £6.48 over last year, or 12p a week. Miss Ferguson also explained that Waverley's share of the council tax bill is only 11 per cent, saying "the rest is Surrey County Council and the police authority, who are increasing by 3.5 per cent and 4.9 per cent respectively". Taking these into account, and the town or parish council demands which are also included, the total average bill at Band D for the year 2005/2006 will be £1,248.33. Farnham residents will pay the highest bills in the borough, at £1,259.64 for Band D. In her budget speech, Miss Ferguson outlined a number of ways in which the council has tried to limit its spending. She explained that setting the budget this year has presented more challenging problems than in any other recent year, saying that Waverley started the process of setting the new budget with an excess of expenditure over income of nearly £400,000 in a £12m total. Miss Ferguson called this a "direct result of the government's continuing failure to fund additional demands such as recycling and licensing," which, she said, "they are imposing on local authorities". Miss Ferguson then outlined Waverley's strategies for saving money, with one of the main points being that the council has asked officers to make reductions in staff costs approximately equivalent to this year's staff pay rise - but without undue impact on front line services. In doing this, Miss Ferguson said, portfolio holders, working closely with chief officers and the chief executive, have identified £294,000 worth of savings on last year's staff costs. Miss Ferguson also pointed out that in 2005/ 2006 the council's capital programme will continue to maintain and make some improvements to its assets. She said: "We will continue to support a range of leisure facilities, including making a start on Farnham Sports Centre refurbishment; further investment totalling £126,000 in the John Stanley Jeffries Trust and completion of the Broadwater dual use facilities, demonstrating our continued commitment to Godalming leisure facilities; this is in addition to the new Godalming Leisure Centre as we develop our proposals." She added: 'We are also providing £360,000 for Farnham Maltings in line with earlier commitments." After the meeting, Stewart Edge, Waverley's portfolio holder for finance, said: "We fully appreciate that council taxpayers expect us to ensure value for money from our current income before proposing council tax rises. "The staff savings we have achieved are equivalent to 4.2 per cent off the council tax. Unfortunately, with unavoidable extra costs this year, over and above inflation, on environmental contracts and pensions, we have not been able to pass on the savings to the council taxpayer. "Waverley has already an underlying shortfall of income versus expenditure, which has arisen over recent years from the cost of extra requirements, for example on recycling and licensing, which have not been paid for by the government."
