WIRRAL residents face massive cuts to services and tax rises to cover a £100m- plus council budget deficit over the next three years.

The Labour opposition last night warned the council is likely to see its deficit grow dramatically and urged the ruling Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition to deal with the problem quickly.

Last night council leader Jeff Green admitted the budget was going to be “challenging” but blamed Labour for “not fixing the roof when the sun was shining” and for leaving the council with a massive hole in its budget.

Cllr Green insisted his coalition was pressing ahead with its plans to carry out Wirral’s “biggest ever consultation” in a bid to discover what the public’s priorities are in the face of difficult budget choices.

But the leader of the Labour group, Steve Foulkes, said the authority needs to quickly find ways to cover the shortfall which is expected to grow from around £80m.

With further Government cuts to local authorities anticipated, Labour have warned the budget gap in the borough is likely to top £100m – and claim the current administration has so far only made "political gesture" cuts while decisions such as retaining Birkenhead town hall could prove expensive.