LIVERPOOL City Council has no need to axe jobs or slash services despite spending cuts of up to 20%, the Government insisted yesterday.
John Denham, the Communities Secretary, hit back at a survey suggesting local authorities were intending to sack at least 25,000 workers within five years. One expert put the figure at 100,000.
Libraries, nurseries, leisure centres and the arts were the most vulnerable to the spending squeeze – while children's social services, help for the homeless and planning would be protected.
Liverpool City Council forecast cuts of 5-20%, with similar warnings from Sefton (10-15%), Cheshire West and Chester (10-15%), Halton (5-10%) and Warrington (0-5%).
But Mr Denham issued a 10-point plan to help councils cut spending while protecting frontline services, warning that voters would be furious with any town hall that ignored the “checklist”.
It included a new budgeting system called “Total Place”, under which some councils are already ending duplication by co-ordinating services with the likes of primary care trusts (PCTs). Other suggestions were: check performance against other councils, buy goods and services in groups, reduce the number of council buildings and streamline management.
