Delays possible finalising council budget
Inverleith Park gym equipment
West End elephant
Fundraising for Sick Kids
Rick Astley at The Queen’s Hall
The City of Edinburgh Council may need to consider delaying the finalisation of the city’s 2016/17 Budget due to the severity of the local government settlement announced earlier this week.
Edinburgh’s proposed settlement figure sees a headline revenue reduction of some 4.5%, which is double that which was anticipated prior to Wednesday’s announcement.
Council Leader, Andrew Burns, said: “A reduction in revenue funding of the scale now being proposed, will undoubtedly have a negative impact on a whole range of vital services that local government is responsible for delivering: the children in our care, the elderly struggling with dementia whom we look after, and vulnerable adults whom we assist daily; all these individuals rely on the support that only a council can provide.
“Of course we will continue to work with our colleagues in COSLA, to try and reach an improved negotiated settlement, but given the Scottish Government has confirmed their final Budget will not be approved by Parliament until the end of February, we may now have to seriously consider delaying the finalisation of the city’s own budget for 2016/17.”
Council Deputy Leader, Sandy Howat, added: “A revenue cut of this scale would be very damaging for jobs and services within Scottish local government generally, and here in Edinburgh specifically – the harsh reality is that this will translate to real job cuts that hit real families, in real communities throughout our capital city. Everyone will be hurt by this.
“The City of Edinburgh Council is already facing significant workforce reductions, and very challenging budget decisions – Wednesday’s announcement makes all of that even more difficult, and we may well need to consider delaying the finalisation of our own budget for the city.”
Are you interested in having gym equipment in Inverleith Park that is particularly suitable for older / less mobile people? Friends of Inverleith Park are looking for help to make it happen! You can donate and read more at the following website: http://www.mypark.scot/edinburgh/
Edinburgh’s West End welcomed an exotic new resident as part of a drive to establish the city’s ‘plinth’ for public art last month.
Baby Elephant, by Scottish sculptor Ronald Rae, has been installed on the corner of Hope Street and Princes Street, which has been earmarked as a space for visiting art by the Council.
Rae, who also created the Lion of Scotland in St Andrew Square, loaned the Baby Elephant to Edinburgh to highlight the endangered status of the Asian elephant, of which there are only around 2500 left in the wild.
Have you seen it? Will you share some photos with us if you have?
Edinburgh restaurateurs Maria and Rosario Sartore raised £2000 for The Edinburgh Sick Kids Friends Foundation by hosting a traditional Italian Sunday lunch and a raffle at their Italian restaurant, Locanda de Gusti.
Maria Sartore commented: “Rosario have I have 4 children, all of whom have been cared for at Sick Kids, either for minor procedures, appointments and long term aftercare. We wanted to thank all the doctors, nurses and staff for their care, support and dedication, by raising funds for the foundation. Our Italian Sunday lunch was a great day for a great cause.”
Did you know Rick Astley is playing at the Queen’s Hall next April?
He has a brand new album to promote and will include the capital on his UK tour.
Tickets (in case this is of interest to you for a wee last minute Christmas present!)
here.
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Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
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