A COUNCIL has outlined its top five priorities for the next five years as it works to cut £167 million from its budget.

North Yorkshire County Council said following a public consultation exercise it had been decided to focus upon creating opportunities for young people and businesses, tackling loneliness and social isolation and improving broadband connectivity and transport links.

While its 2020 Council Plan shows its key objectives still include the delivery of services to the most vulnerable and developing strategies to tackle key issues, the authority said it would also focus on enabling individuals, families and communities to do the best for themselves.

The plan, due to be debated by the authority's members next month, features a drive to support communities to provide a range of services by using local assets, to prevent loneliness and support troubled families, and contribute to healthier lifestyles.

It also states the authority wants to press on with reducing residents' need to contact council staff by providing self-service facilities and ready access to information.

A report to the authority's executive states: "Rather than always looking for ways to do things for people, local government needs to start finding ways to make things happen."

Of 1,089 Citizen's Panel respondents to a question about the setting of council tax found 63 per cent believed the authority should increase its element of council tax by 1.9 per cent.