Hertfordshire County Council may have to increase Council Tax bills by ten per cent to maintain the current standard of public services.
The council needs an extra £19million in this year's budget, but there are concerns that the Government will not provide the cash. Around two thirds of the county's annual £840million budget is provided by the Government, and the rest comes from Council Tax.
The extra drain on resources is being blamed on a number of factors. An extra 1,000 children are attending the county's schools, and an extra 480 senior citizens and people with disabilities are being given council-funded residential care.
The amount of household rubbish being generated has increased by four per cent, costing around £600,000 more to dispose of, and new Government health and safety rules have increased costs.
Councillors from all political parties are to ask the Government for more funding.
October 24, 2001 10:24
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