Without council tax rise East Sussex fire service would have to find even more savings

On Thursday (February 11), members of the fire authority set their annual budget for 2021/22, unanimously agreeing to increase its precept by 1.99 per cent.

Before the meeting, members had asked for the option of freezing the precept in light of the impact of the coronavirus. But members chose not to take this option after hearing it would cost the authority somewhere in the region of £500,000.

Cllr Garry Peltzer Dunn, (Con, Brighton and Hove), said: “I was very much in favour of seeing whether we could have a precept freeze, because everybody has been going through horrendously difficult times and I am sure that in our hearts we all want to help.

“But as I went through the negotiations with the officers I became more and more concerned about the financial impact that such a gesture might have. 

“I am grateful to Duncan [Savage, finance director] for providing such a detailed appraisal of the situation. His report is most helpful in laying out the likely future financial path which I think all members would agree is very daunting.

“If we are to proceed with a freeze there can be little doubt that major savings will be required, which could well result in a decline in the service provided to the community in the future.”  

Cllr Peltzer Dunn went on to say the 1.99 per cent increase would equate to ‘less than the price of a takeaway coffee per annum’ for the average Band D household. In clearer terms, the increase would cost a Band D household an extra £1.80 a year, bringing the annual bill to £97.33.

He also pointed to the results of the recent consultation on the fire service’s Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP), which saw more than 80 per cent of respondents say they would support an increase in council tax for fire services.

The increase to the fire service precept unanimous support from fire authority members. 

Cllr Amanda Evans, Labour, (Brighton and Hove), said: “I don’t often find myself saying this about a Conservative speech, but I am delighted to say nonetheless that I absolutely agree with every word Garry Peltzer Dunn just said.

“I think it would indeed be a short term minuscule gain, as he says less than a takeaway coffee. 

“He is right, we all do want to help. There is a lot of deprivation after covid that there wasn’t before. We see it in Brighton in particular. In the city it is very apparent how much extra deprivation there is.” 

“However, there are council tax reduction schemes for those in genuine hardship and the amount we are talking about is so minuscule compared to the damage it would do to this fire and rescue service and the cuts that would be required.”

Cllr Carolyn Lambert, (Liberal Democrat, East Sussex), meanwhile, said:  “We continue to face challenges both financial and indeed operational.

“That has all got to be put in the national context of the inspectorate and the legislative in the fire safety bill, and a Home Office and government that has simply not provided any additional funding for this vital emergency service.

“Across the five-year medium term financial plan, there is a total loss of income of around £2.9m. Let’s not forget that is on top of the £17m that has already been stripped from our budget. We all know just how difficult that has made life. 

“A zero per cent increase in these circumstances, would frankly be madness and I believe that is not what the public would want or expect.” 

The budget also includes one off contribution of £210,000 to the fire authority’s general reserves. This, meeting papers say, is to ensure the authority’s reserves remain above minimum levels in 2022/23.

Money would have to have been taken from these reserves should the council tax freeze have been approved.

After the meeting, fire authority chairman Roy Galley said: “Every member of the fire authority recognises that Covid-19 has affected our communities, our local businesses and the finances of individual households.

“It was important to us to understand better the impact of the different options open to the fire authority. Following an in-depth debate, a decision was made to increase the council tax.

“We believe this is the best way to ensure funding to continue to serve the public and save lives now and in the future. We will continue to lobby Government for fair and sustainable funding for our life saving fire and rescue services.”

East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service will now explore future efficiencies in a number of areas including:

• Alternative ways of delivering community safety activities such as education, home safety initiatives and road safety projects

• Sharing services such as estates, fleet and engineering with other public sector partners

• Using IT to make processes more efficient

• Reviewing administration and management structures

• Reviewing planned investment in estate and fleet.