Budget cuts will see end of free services

Published on Wednesday 24 February 2010 21:46

THE public will have to start paying for government services that are currently delivered free of charge as a result of deep cuts in the budgets of Scotland's local authorities, a report warns today.

• Services such as free travel are under the spotlight. Picture: Sean Bell

In a paper seen by The Scotsman, the men and women who run Scotland's local authorities say ministers and councillors will need to rethink costly policy priorities as a result of expected financial shortfalls.

Significantly, they raise the prospect of charging for some services, rather than meeting the cost from general taxation.

The Society of Local Authority Chief Executives (Solace) believes a cultural shift is required in Scotland ahead of the cuts, so that people accept the state doing less, and the individual doing more.

As councils, schools and hospitals deal with fierce public sector cut, the public will have "to do more for themselves", the Solace paper says.

The report is published the day after economists warned Scotland's historical bias towards public sector employment could put its economy at increased risk of relapsing into recession.

In a downbeat assessment, the influential Fraser of Allander Institute said yesterday that even if Scotland emerged from recession in the coming months, it could sink back into negative growth later this year and in 2011.

That assessment of the country's economic prospects will reinforce the Solace warnings.

The chief executives do not name specific services they think will have to be paid for, but their paper will mean further scrutiny of the affordability of costly universal services introduced since devolution, such as free personal care for the elderly, concessionary bus travel, cut-price prescription charges and reduced costs for university students.

Experts also suggested the public could be asked to do more, for example, by keeping their street clean or in rubbish disposal, so that councils focus only on those in genuine need.

The chief executives say council efficiencies already under way will not be enough to solve the problem. Instead, they believe a "rebalancing" has to take place, with some arguing that the huge increases in public spending over the past 15 years have led to a situation of "over-government".

The Solace paper comes as a report by Audit Scotland is published, warning a "fundamental review of public services is needed" to cope with the cuts. It says efficiency savings will not be enough to meet the gap between costs and demand, and that staff cuts and farming out services to providers such as voluntary groups will be necessary.

The Fraser of Allander Institute has set out three scenarios for growth and jobs in the coming two years - 'high', 'central' or 'low'. 'High' is the best-case scenario, 'central' the most likely scenario and 'low' the worst case scenario. The main concern is that the recession will turn into a double-dip slump.

Finance secretary John Swinney will today address the Solace conference on public sector cuts. Earlier this month, he ordered an independent review of the cost of public services in Scotland, which is expected to lay the ground for cuts beginning in 2011.

Councils and government officials in Scotland are preparing for a reduction of up to 12 per cent in their funding over the next three years, as the UK government seeks to reduce its ballooning public sector deficit.

Several councils are already facing major funding problems. In Edinburgh, savings of 90 million over the next three years are being sought, with schools facing cutbacks. In Aberdeen, enforced savings have led to reductions in education and social service funding.

The Solace paper argues policymakers must "review and redefine the relationship between the individual and the state, specifically encouraging people to do more for themselves". It says central government should fall back, so more decisions are made by local bodies with "minimal oversight".

It goes on: "The debate needs to consider the balance between charging for services and funding them from taxation. There may be scope to meet the cost of some services by charging those who use them rather than through a levy on all taxpayers."

Solace also warns that pay restraint across the public sector will be an "essential part" of protecting front-line services.

Bernadette Malone, chief executive of Perth and Kinross Council and chair of Solace Scotland, said: "We are very aware of both the financial pressures in the public sector and the widespread view that we have too many public bodies. We see a need to build a consensus on how we deliver public services across Scotland.

"Building such consensus means a wide-ranging debate about what we want our public services to look like in five, ten, 15 years and beyond. That debate needs to be about more than just numbers of public bodies; it needs to cover all aspects of what public services we want and how we want them delivered."

Professor Richard Kerley, of Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, said: "We have seen increasing expectations from the public who think that government should always do something. We saw it during the snowfall recently. But there are countries where there is an expectation that when you have a fall of snow, it's up to you to clear it. It's about putting more responsibility back on to people."

John McLaren, of the Centre for Public Policy for Regions think tank, said: "In the short term, if you want people to do more for themselves, you could take away some universal benefits and target them better. In the longer term, it's about moving to a preventative system in health care which stops people needing benefits in the first place, and helps them get more active in society."

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