Shrewsbury rally against Shropshire Council cuts

Hundreds of people have gathered in a Shropshire town to take part in a rally over council spending cuts.

Earlier this week, Shropshire Council approved plans to cut almost £40m from the capital spending budget over the next four years.

On Saturday, campaigners marched from the Conservative-run council's offices at Shirehall in Shrewsbury to the Square for a mass rally.

Council leader Keith Barrow has said the cuts had to be made.

Roger McKenzie, from Unison, said the event was a "magnificent" demonstration by local people.

'Not dead and buried'

He said he was encouraging people to go to a mass demonstration against the government funding cuts on 26 March.

As part of the budget proposals discussed on Tuesday, the council said a £7m refurbishment of the Music Hall in Shrewsbury would continue, but a proposed £3.5m investment in leisure facilities would not go ahead.

Improvements at Shrewsbury Crematorium were scrapped, along with a proposed £1.2m transport hub at Ludlow.

Plans to spend £1m on Ellesmere Market were also been shelved.

However, Mr Barrow said the decision did not mean those schemes were "dead and buried forever".

They may still be possible in the future, he added.