£25m cuts and tax rise in council budget

NORTH Tyneside Council's Labour administration has voted through its latest budget, complete with £25m in cuts and the maximum council tax hike allowed.

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Councillors approved a 4.99% increase in council tax - the legal maximum without a local referendum or special permission from central government.

The council, akin to local authorities across the country, is seeing increasing levels of demand and complexity in adult and children’s social care, at a cost of £18m. Financial management, including councillors’ allowances and council project financing costs, also account for £6m.

Other fiscal challenges also emerged earlier in the year, when the Government's new multiyear settlement increased the council's projected funding gap by £900,000, totalling £3.8m.