Clackmannanshire council, Scotland's smallest mainland council, must take urgent and decisive action to sort out its financial problems, according to a report from the Accounts Commission which highlighted ‘serious concerns’ about how it is spending its reserves
The council faces making savings of £29m over the next three years out of an annual budget of £118m, and the Commission said it is at risk of running out of general fund reserves within two or three years, if it continues to spend reserves at the same rate in recent years.
The report stated: ‘The council has made significant savings over recent years but has yet to make the transformational changes necessary to secure its financial position. It has used reserves to balance budgets; this is not sustainable and the council must now make difficult decisions about the services it can afford to deliver.’
The Commission says strong leadership is now essential in the wake of previous political instability. This also requires close working between councillors and officers. In addition, the Commission recommends the council seeks external support, for example from other councils.
Graham Sharp, chair of the Accounts Commission, said: ‘This report is a wake up call. Councillors and officers in Clackmannanshire urgently need to work together to make the fundamental changes required to address its financial position, so that it can continue to deliver the key services people depend on.
‘This means taking difficult decisions it has put off in the past. But not taking them now is not an option and will only make things worse in the longer term.’
Best Value Assurance Report Clackmannanshire Council is here.
