Labour Councillor slams West Lancs Borough Council job cuts

Feb 4 2010 Ormskirk Advertiser

A LABOUR Councillor has slammed the decision by West Lancashire Borough Council to axe jobs while retaining substantial cash reserves.

The local authority announced last week that it had slashed 10% of its workforce, blaming the global recession and cuts in funding from central government.

The redundancies form part of a £1.5m bundle of spending cuts, which were agreed by the council last summer.

Conservative Party Councillor Ian Grant, Leader of the Council, expressed his 'delight' last week when the local authority had the 'foresight to make tough decisions.'

However, Councillor Neil Furey, who represents Skelmersdale North, which is blighted by long term economic and social problems, has said that the news is no cause for celebration and questioned the rational underpinning the cuts.

He said: “I expect council staff who lost their jobs will be very angry that the Conservative Council Leader is celebrating his success. Despite having £23 million in reserves this excellent council thought it prudent to axe jobs and services during difficult financial times. This must be the only employer in the borough that actually celebrates putting staff on the dole and cutting services to it's customers.”

Cllr Ian Grant, Leader of the Council, said: “I’m delighted that the Council had the foresight to take these tough decisions at an early stage. Thanks to the co-operation of our workforce and our prudent financial management, we have reached our targets with minimal impact on either services or staff.”