A “perfect storm of budget pressures” continues to haunt Highland Council as it struggles to balance its books for next year, according to its finance director.
Derek Yule warned yesterday at a full council meeting that Highland Councillors had a choice of spending priorities that couldbe summed up as “roads against schools”.
He told members it was now up to them to address a remaining £6million shortfall in the council’s overall 2017-18 budget and that it required “a fundamental review” of its current calculations.
Calculated on the basis of a 4% cut in governmnent grant next year, he said Highland initially faced a £30million budget gap and it was still £6million short.
It is not yet clear how much can be saved by an “early release” scheme by which staff volunteer to quit their jobs.
Addressing the authority’s capital programme review at the last full council meeting before Christmas, Mr Yule said: “Officers have taken this exercise as far as they can. What it really requires now is some political decisions round priorities and operational need.
“It’s a perfect storm of huge pressures in capital as well as revenue.”
He floated an option of “modular build” of schools to cope with the north’s increasing education demands.
The current independent-led minority administration has long stated that its key priority is roads.
Mr Yule warned: “At a very rude level, it comes down to roads against schools.”
Council leader Margaret Davidson accepted that the authority’s draft budget was currently “unaffordable”.
She said committee chairmen and political group leaders would meet early in the New Year to resolve the situation. The council has until February to balance the books.
“The school building programme needs to continue,” she said. “People have got to be planning and building over the summer but we need to take as early a grip as possible so we know what the next schools are.”
An attempt by opposition SNP councillor Bill Lobban to add a condition to the existing capital plan to be reviewed early by the next council, elected next May, was defeated in a 43-17 vote.