CITY of York Council's leader is optimistic the city will get a budget for the year ahead at a crunch meeting this evening, despite opposition from other parties and rebel Labour members.

Cllr Dafydd Williams, leader of the authority since December, is hopeful that divisions and disagreements in the council won't stop crucial budget plans for the year ahead being agreed today.

He said: "Of course there are other proposals coming forward, because people want to set out their stall, but that does not mean that we cannot agree on anything.

"I have had some discussions with other councillors outside of the Labour group. No deals have been struck but I have had conversations about where there is common ground."

With only 21 councillors out of 47 on the authority, Cllr Williams' Labour group needs support from other parties to get their budget approved.

But in recent days, each of the four other party groups have drawn up their own budget amendments - with most including a promise to save the under-threat Castlegate youth advice centre and keeps its services outside of the council's West Offices HQ.

York Press:
Campaigners against the proposed closure of the Castlegate Centre have previously demonstrated outside City of York Council’s West Offices 

The Labour Independent group, made up of Clifton councillors Ken King and David Scott, who rebelled and left the party dramatically in October, are the latest to draw up an alternative budget which makes saving Castlegate a priority.

Their plans include cash to keep Yearsley Pool and Burton Stone Lane Community Centre open, and lower residents' parking charges - to be funded by a raid on councillor expenses and slashing the numbers of senior managers at the authority.

The full council meeting on the budget starts at 6.30pm at the Guildhall. If the 10.15pm "guillotine" falls bringing the council meeting to an end before the parties have agreed, councillors will reconvene a week later to push for a final decision on the financial plans.


Tories oppose Labour’s spending

YORK Tory politicians have slammed what they call "click-bait" budget plans from their Labour rivals.

The city needs a focus on vital services rather than what they have called "vanity projects" with things like highways maintenance, green waste collections, better enforcement of planning conditions, and more money for apprentices taking centre stage.

Improvements to those services all feature in a Conservative budget amendment. It will be debated and voted on beside the official proposals from the ruling Labour group and alternatives from other parties.

Conservative group leader Cllr Chris Steward said: “We think it’s time for a mature, evidence-based approach to the council’s budget instead of Labour’s ‘spend every penny’ mindset.

"We’ve done this by reducing the contingency contribution, reducing trade union budgets to the minimum required, reducing the council’s marketing and communications spend and cutting out the funds for the proposed Congestion Commission."

The plan also cuts what Cllr Steward calls "click-bait" policies - including reduced bus fares for young people; money for an adult social care community fund, voluntary sector capacity funding, and environmental improvement, and cuts the planned Congestion Commission.

"We are keeping the money in reserve until the case has been proven," he added.