David Maples, Brighton Socialist Party
An air of self-congratulation hangs over the town hall. Following on from Tory government cuts of £120 million per year, and cuts in Brighton services of £240 million per year, the Labour council is rushing through another £33 million of cuts!
The leader of the council criticised the Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition (TUSC) – which the Socialist Party is part of – in her local newspaper column. “The TUSC candidate in the [South Portslade] by-election stood on a platform of opposing all cuts”, stating that “declaring ourselves bankrupt would only mean handing control of the city’s finances and decision-making over to Michael Gove”.
This is not TUSC’s position. We argue that the council should set a needs-based budget, and use reserves and prudential borrowing powers to fund it, whilst demanding that the incoming Labour government provides adequate funding. What is the point of electing a Starmer-led government unless it rebuilds public services?
Instead, the Labour council intends to:
- Reduce support for special educational needs children and their families
- Introduce charges for transport for young people between 16 and 18 with special educational needs
- Stop funding the pre-employment and placement scheme for disabled people
- Reduce supported employment and youth employability provision
- Reduce family contact for children in care and children in need
- Close in-house community support for adults with learning disabilities
- End early opening of public toilets
- Reduce homelessness services
- Reduce library staffing
- Reduce funding to community and voluntary organisations
- Reduce services for domestic violence
- Reduce support for low-income households
And let’s not forget that the Labour council is closing St Peter’s and St Bartholomew’s schools (see ‘Brighton and Hove – councillors have a choice’), and reducing classes at others. This reads very much like a list drawn up by Michael Gove!
Page after page, the proposals ignore the pressure on frontline staff, while including 180 job cuts. Labour even intends to cut trade union support to staff by 25%.
The Greens were routed out of power in Brighton at the 2023 council elections, having presided over Tory cuts. The Greens’ election agent admitted that, rather than use the recent by-election to galvanise opposition to the closure of St Peter’s School, it ran a token campaign, because it was concentrating on the general election. Such contempt for working-class families!
We stand with service users, families and staff in opposing these cuts, lobbying the council budget meeting on 22 February. We call on Labour councillors to make the ‘difficult decision’ to get off their arses and stand with us in opposition to the cuts, or stand aside for the councillors who will.
