GMB round up shows 11,766 job cuts in 17 local councils for 2016/17 budgets
A further 30% cut will mean amputations as councils and other public services are forced to decide which services they stop providing altogether says GMB
GMB, the union for public sector workers, has found that 17 councils across Britain have already announced a total 11,766 job cuts to meet cuts in their budget for 2016/17.
This figure comes from GMB monitoring of budget fixing for 2016/17 in councils across the country. Below in notes to editors are the details for 29 councils for financial year 2016/17.
The details for these 17 councils are as follow:
3,000 Glasgow City Council
2,000 Edinburgh City Council
1,800 Cumbria Council
1,000 North Lanarkshire Council
700 Falkirk Council
506 Fife council
454 Hampshire County Council
400 South Lanarkshire Council
350 Walsall Council
330 Gentoo (manager of Sunderland City Council's housing stock)
306 Argyll and Bute
275 Dudley Council
250 East Sussex County Council
200 Merthyr Tydfil Council
100 Worcestershire County Council
50 Cambridgeshire County Council
45 Carlisle City Council
11,766 total
Justin Bowden, GMB National Officer for local council workers, said "These 11,766 job cuts are just the tip of the iceberg of the cuts yet to be revealed as councils fix budgets for 2016/17.
They are in advance of the announcement that four government departments – Treasury, transport, local government and environment - have agreed to cut their spending by an average of another 30% over the next four years.
The full extent of the cuts will be revealed in the Spending Review on 25th November. Spending in some parts of the public sector like local councils will be half that in 2010. These same councils have to cope with increased pressures from the care sector and other upward cost pressures.
The last round of local government job losses were described as cutting council services to the bone. The further 30% cut will mean amputations as councils and other public services are forced to decide which services they stop providing altogether.
With the cuts to come people will have more chance of winning the lottery than seeing police patrolling their streets."
