Town council budget will have ‘ramifications’ for years to come, warns mayor

MELKSHAM Mayor cllr Jon Hubbard has resigned as a member of the ruling Liberal Democrat group in a row over the town council’s budget.

This year’s budget, agreed at a meeting last week, has been condemned by cllr Hubbard who has warned it could have ‘damaging’ long-term consequences for the town. 

Cllr Hubbard says the budget will leave the town council short of money and unable to deliver services that are set to be handed over to the town council by Wiltshire Council, such as street cleaning, grass cutting and dealing with fly-tipping.

Earlier this month, the majority of councillors voted in favour of a 4.6% increase of its precept to £884,910 – the proportion of council tax which is paid to the town council – rejecting a proposal to increase the precept by 17% to £990,122. The decision has resulted in the loss of almost £106,000, which would normally be allocated to the council’s major projects reserve. 

However, the town council’s budget for 2020/21 has been defended by its leader, cllr Vanessa Fiorelli, who has said that the council will still be able to deliver all the services it has set out to do. Cllr Fiorelli has also said that the 4.6% increase is reflective of the ‘uncertainty’ currently faced by residents, with more people relying on foodbanks.

Speaking to Melksham News, cllr Hubbard said, “At the meeting, the town clerk (Linda Roberts) was asked if we could deliver devolved services with the increase of 4.6% – her answer was a firm ‘no’. 

“Negotiations have already started between the town council and Wiltshire Council about what services we will be taking over – this could be services such as dealing with fly-tipping, gully cleaning, street cleaning, grass cutting and maintenance of the cemetery. This will all require a significant amount of investment – but we now have nothing in the budget to support this, we don’t have the money to buy any new equipment.

“The 4.6% increase will result in cuts and a reduction in quality of the service offered to the community by the town council. The 17% increase would have helped the council to continue to invest in the town and continue enhancing services. And the £106,000 we have lost from the 2020/21 budget is money that the Liberal Democrats argued to keep as part of the 2019/20 budget!

“The councillors, especially the Liberal Democrats, are running scared – afraid of any backlash from a precept increase. Last year, the Lib Dems lost by one vote to the Conservatives in the Melksham North by-election, shortly after the announcement of the precept increase – they are scared that this will happen again.

“But the town council will get as many complaints about the 4.6% as they would have the 17% increase.

“For the past few years the town council has been delivering on its promises – we opened the splashpad last year, our play areas remain open and safe, grass is being cut, our streets are cleaner – the town has been getting a return on its precept, and there have been very few complaints. This is all in jeopardy now, councillors have bottled it.”

In response to the decision, cllr Hubbard announced that he was resigning his membership from the Liberal Democrats, who hold the majority of seats on the town council, explaining that he will continue in his town and county councillor roles as an independent representative. 

In a public statement, cllr Hubbard criticised his former Liberal Democrat members saying, “I have seen a Lib Dem administration in Melksham Town Hall increasingly bring in a blame culture, reject any opinions or suggestions that they don’t like, and create a toxic working environment.”

Asked to expand on his comments by Melksham News, cllr Hubbard said, “I do not wish to delve into personality politics. But as an independent councillor I can put 100% of my focus on putting the community first and standing up for what I think is right. I’d rather be honest than be part of something which is fundamentally a poor decision that will have ramifications for the town for many years.”

New town council leader, cllr Fiorelli told Melksham News, “Option A (the increase of 4.6%) was definitely the right way to go in terms of how people are feeling at the moment. We are in a period where there is a lot of uncertainty in the country, and people more than ever are visiting foodbanks, and are relying on additional services to help make ends meet. 

“Imposing a 17% increase, when we could be looking at other options of raising funds, it seemed a bit unfair. The majority of councilors went with the 4.6% increase – which still ensures that we can deliver all of the services that we have set out to do, and can still offer grant funding.

“Moving forward, it won’t affect anything in regards to how we manage the council, but we are concious of the fact that people are doing it tough out there.

“We have still approved an increase – and that increase covers the cost of the additional grounds staff that we have taken on – many will have seen them already in action working hard on our play areas and our streets. 

“What cllr Hubbard is referring to, and this normally happens every year, is that we put aside £106,000 to add to our reserves. This year is not the year to do that, people have told us that they are struggling, we can see that with the number of people using foodbanks. We cannot implement that sort of increase. 

“What we do need to do as a council is get savvy with where we get our funding from – it cannot always come from the residents of Melksham. There is grant funding out there for councils. For example, CCTV, there are grants available from the Home Office. There are others ways to raise money that doesn’t impact on the tax payer.”

About cllr Hubbard’s decision to resign his membership from the Liberal Democrats and his claims that the Liberal Democrats have created a ‘toxic working environment’ at the Town Hall, cllr Fiorelli said, “I wish cllr Hubbard the best of luck. He has his own reasons for wanting to move on (from the Liberal Democrats) – but what I will say is that my father always told me that there are three sides to every story – yours, mine, and the truth. Let’s move on and continue to work hard for the community, with all 15 councillors, including cllr Hubbard, working together.”