The leader of East Lothian Council has written to the Scottish government highlighting the “unsustainable and unmanageable” financial situation that the authority faces.
In a letter addressed to Scotland’s deputy first minister, Shona Robison, Norman Hampshire detailed that the resources currently available to the council are “not sufficient” to meet the rising cost of delivering services due to significant population growth in the area.
He wrote: “East Lothian Council is facing a ‘perfect and escalating financial storm’.
“Not only are we facing these very acute financial pressures facing all Scottish councils, we are also being faced with very significant, immediate and ongoing recurring financial challenges associated with supporting population growth.
“Collectively, the financial impact of all of these issues is now placing the council in what I can only describe as a critical financial situation and we are urgently facing very difficult and real decisions which will see the end of the provision of vital essential services.”
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Council tax makes up a quarter of East Lothian Council’s resource base, with the majority of its income coming from central government grants.
Hampshire detailed that the council has forecasted that more than £50m of savings will be required over the next four years to balance the authority’s budget.
He wrote: “This is very stark and a very different scale from other authorities, and for a council of this size, is simply unsustainable and quite frankly unmanageable.”
In the letter, Hampshire requested an urgent cross-party meeting with the deputy first minister to discuss the authority’s financial situation.
He added: “Whilst I do believe there may be some opportunity to review the national distribution mechanism which supports national funding, the implications facing East Lothian arising from population growth cannot simply be addressed by an in-ward looking review of distribution given the wide range of concurrent pressures facing the local government sector as a whole.”
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