HAMPSHIRE County Council's cabinet is being asked to consider a budget that would keep the next council tax increase at 4.7 per cent, using efficiencies, where possible, to avoid cuts to priority services. The increase of 4.7 per cent will see Band D properties paying £910.62 for the county council's share of the council tax, compared with £869.40 in 2005/06, and, if agreed by cabinet today (Friday) will then be presented by council leader Ken Thornber to a meeting of the full council on February 22. Mr Thornber, said: "The government has given Hampshire a derisory grant settlement, an increase of below 0.2 per cent while at the same time capping council tax at five per cent, despite government claiming to have given councils above inflation grant increases. Inevitably, this means that tough choices have to be made. "The county council is facing costs which are rising higher than inflation, including a rise of up to four per cent on social care, up to seven per cent on building maintenance and waste management, and 56 per cent on the costs of street lighting. "In social care, for example, there will also be a seven per cent increase in the number of people needing some level of care this year. "We are already making year on year savings through efficiencies as we continue our drive to provide even greater value for money, which in 2006/2007 will bring in savings of nearly £11m, which we are using to meet some of our pressures. "The government has asked the South East to build an average of 28,900 new homes each year for the next 20 years, so clearly what the region needs is not less money from government for services and infrastructure, but significantly more. "Against this background of such budget pressures, we have had to consider how to modernise certain services so that they deliver absolute value for money. "We know that the services our residents care most about are those that affect children, vulnerable adults and the state of the roads, and these areas are always a priority for us. "With a growing elderly population, an increasing number of adults with disabilities needing support, and with little support from government, it is small wonder we have had to look hard at how to best use the funds available for adult care. What we are looking at here is provision that is better value for money and more suited to the needs of each individual and more independent living. "We are determined that Hampshire residents will continue to receive the quality of service they need and expect from a top rated authority, despite the difficulties presented by such a low settlement from government. "We are equally determined to continue our fight for a fair deal, lobbying government for funding which will sufficiently address the needs of people in the South East." Hampshire's total budget for 2006/07 is £568million. Of this £120million comes from government grant. The total budget figure does not include money for schools, which are now financed through a specific grant from the Department for Education and Skills.
