Council's finances 'full of red lights' says Tory

SOMERSET Council's finances have “more red lights flashing than a red light district”, according to one Conservative councillor.

- DANIEL MUMBY

The council declared a financial emergency in November 2023 and has relied on support from central government to balance its budget in both 2024 and 2025.

Despite this support, the council currently faces a budget gap of just over £45m for the current financial year - with next year's budget gap rising to just over £101m, and the gap projected to exceed £190m by 2029/30.

To close this gap, the council has invested £20m (raised from the sale of surplus assets) on its transformation programme, bringing in external consultants to change how it delivers front-line services as well as pouring more than £1.5m into AI to improve productivity.