The council has discussed a number of budget concerns
Even if it introduces a maximum council tax increase Cambridgeshire County Council has said it is still currently facing a £6.4million budget gap next year. The authority is still waiting to hear how much money it will receive from the central government to provide services in the area.
The county council is responsible for a number of services, including road repairs, education, and social care. Councils are required to set a balanced budget each year. Michael Hudson, executive director finance and resources, told a county council meeting this week (December 11) that the authority had identified £72million of “pressures” that needed to be funded.
He explained that with savings already planned and the maximum 4.99 per cent increase of the county council’s share of council tax, that would still leave the authority short £6.4m for the 2026/27 financial year. Mr Hudson said: “We are awaiting the government’s provisional settlement.
“I welcome the fact that it is going to cover a three year period, but I regret the lateness again and the uncertainty around the dedicated school’s grant high needs position. I will be updating councillors as a result of the settlement when it is released.
“We await to see if the funding is adequate to bridge that gap, or whether further savings and income proposals will need to be brought back to the committee in January.”
‘Annoyance’ at Mayor’s ‘late’ request for more money
The meeting was also told that the draft budget did not include the Mayor of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough ’s recent request for a one-per cent increase in the transport levy. Councillor Ros Hathorn (Liberal Democrat) asked what this one-percent increase would actually mean for the county council and whether the authority can afford it.
Mr Hudson said a one-percent increase would mean the county council having to pay £200,000 more to the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority. Councillor Lucy Nethsingha (Liberal Democrat), leader of the county council, said the authority had the power to “veto” the request, but said she did not expect to do that.
Cllr Nethsingha said she understood the Mayor planned to use the money to continue funding the Tiger Pass, which provides discounted bus travel for under 25s, adding that there is consensus about how important the Tiger Pass is. However, Cllr Nethsingha said she was “quite annoyed” that the request had come forward “at this late stage”.
She said: “[The Mayor] is expecting for it to be used for the Tiger Pass, we have been discussing the future of the Tiger Pass and how it can be funded for months and months, he said they do not want to use the transport levy, but now here we are.”
Councillor Alex Beckett (Liberal Democrat) asked what assurance the county council had that the money from the transport levy would “not be used to fund free parking in Peterborough”, which the Mayor has pledged to pursue. Cllr Nethsingha said this was a “fair point” and said she would ask the Mayor about this.
Concern no money set aside for local government reorganisation
The meeting also heard that the draft budget for 2026/27 did “not make any financial provision for the cost of local government reorganisation”. Councillor Chris Boden (Conservative) said it was “shocking” that this had not been included.
He said: “We have to assume the government is going to go ahead and as such we really need to include something about our preparations for local government reorganisation within our budget and within our strategic vision.”
Mr Hudson highlighted that the county council would not have to fund all of the reorganisation costs. He also said while some external resources may be needed, a lot of the work currently is being done by officers at the county council.
Mr Hudson added that he did not want to “unnecessarily put undue pressure on council taxpayers of Cambridgeshire” when they did not know exactly what the “burden” would be.
Cllr Nethsingha said it was “particularly difficult” to include it in the upcoming budget, because they do not know what the new council structure will be and what impact that will have on the work that needs to be done. She said trying to “second guess” things at this stage would be “deeply unhelpful”.
Cllr Nethsingha said: “In the meantime it is important that we focus things absolutely on making sure we are continuing to deliver the highest quality services for our area, regardless of what the new local government boundaries are.”
Once the county council receives its financial settlement from central government a revised draft budget is expected to be published in January, before a final budget is signed off by the full council.
