North Tyneside residents face 5% council tax hike

The proposed moves come as the Labour-run North Tyneside Council tries to make up its £19.2m budget shortfall

People in North Tyneside could face a 5% council tax hike and be forced to pay for garden bin collections.

The proposed moves come as the Labour-run North Tyneside Council tries to make up its £19.2m budget shortfall.

Plans by the council to no longer pay for school meals as part of this new budget had previously been reported.

The proposed budget ensures that frontline services can continue to be delivered, said councillor Anthony McMullen.

'Keep cost to a minimum'

The planned cuts, valued at £9.7m, were detailed at a cabinet meeting on Monday as well as the proposed council tax hike of 4.99%, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

The proposals would still leave a £3.7m deficit in the council's budget.

If no cuts were made, the council's budget deficit would spiral to £49.9m by 2028, councillors said.

Under the plans, garden bin collection would cost £30 and come into force in March 2025.

Councillor Sandra Graham said: "We don't want to charge for brown bins but we will keep this cost to a minimum."

Children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) will also no longer have their transport to and from school paid for by the council, under the plans.

Trade union GMB plans to protest against the stopping of school meal funding in January.

Ms Graham said: "We don't want to stop the provision of school meals but a loss of £3m a year is not a cost we can sustain."

A public consultation on the council's plans will be launched on 4 December and will run until 24 January 2024.

North Tyneside Conservatives accused Labour of fiscal mismanagement and attacked the councillors' proposed budget.

But a Labour spokesperson said that the budget protects frontline services such as leisure centres, libraries and parks.

The council also said they would continue to maintain a fund to help those who struggle to pay their council tax.

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