At the Full Council meeting 24/2/21 we had received an update on the terms of the draft 2021/22 Scottish Government Budget, including funding for a Council Tax freeze. During the debate, when all political groups except the Liberal Democrats agreed to that freeze for 2021/22, I said I was not a fan of council tax freezes and hope that accepting this one was not a precursor to future freezes like a previous 10-year freeze period under the SNP Government. Freezes are usually caveated by significant ring-fencing of Government funds allocated to local authorities, who increasingly become mere agents of government policy. However, as we exit the COVID lockdown it is probably appropriate to support a freeze and it is of course electorally popular before an election because all but the most discerning of the public do not make the connection between cuts in services resulting from council tax freezes.

Subsequently, having agreed a freeze, PKC had to debate how to adjust our provisional Revenue budget which had been based on a council tax increase of 4.28% in March 2020.

So, on 10/3/21 the Independent Group produced a budget which, unlike the other party groups, did not involve taking any money from earmarked Reserves for Covid-19. In my speech to the debate, I highlighted 3 main themes to our budget proposals for additional expenditure:

1. Post Covid-19 lockdown we felt there was a need to support children, youth and older people so made proposals for Youth Community Golf & Tennis (£75,000), the Equalities Fund (£40,000), Supporting Activities for Older People (£75,000) and Mental Health Initiatives (£70,000).

2. We made capital provisions totalling £31.75 million to be funded from Revenue by covering the annual cost of borrowing at current ‘record’ low interest rates; so effectively providing, amongst other things, a Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund (£1m), a Town Centre Regeneration Fund (£3m), Local Roads (£3.5m + £40,000 from Revenue for unadopted roads that had been previously withdrawn, including provisions for pothole repairs & flood prevention i.e. ditch clearance and gully cleaning, the latter not mentioned by other groups), Loch Leven Heritage Trail (£250,000) and Active Travel Routes/Paths (£1m).

3. I also asked Members to note that most of our additional expenditure proposals were based on recurring expenditure, not just for one year, in a rolling programme for the future.

Finally, in relation to Kinross-shire Ward, we proposed 3 measures:

1. Funding to support administration costs (£40,000) for a ‘pilot’ Area Committee of PKC for Kinross-shire. I have been working for this since my first term of office began in 1999 and would like to see it come to fruition before I stand down in 2022. A scheme for devolving power to community level is particularly appropriate for the former county of Kinross-shire whose area population is so much greater than it was at re-organisation of local government in the 1970s. The concept is supported by the 4 local members and the Kinross-shire Forum of Community Councils, with Cllr Purves and myself having recently pursued a draft scheme with officers and happy to work further on an acceptable scheme that, initially, would not include quasi-judicial matters and would retain voting rights to local members only.

2. The Kinross Railway ‘Feasibility Study’ builds on a PKC unanimous decision of 4/10/17 made at our historic council meeting in Kinross and provides £50,000.

3. Regional Parks (£50,000) need feasibility work on the creation of an Ochil Hills Regional Park and the expansion of the Lomond Hills Park, which is also supported by Kinross-shire Forum & Local Members.

Unfortunately, our budget did not pass but the proposals from the minority Tory Administration did and that included money for Local Roads (£4m including restoring the withdrawn funding for unadopted roads), Loch Leven Heritage Trail (£160,000), the provision of a new permanent ranger service that we had suggested and crucially our ‘pilot’ local decision[1]making committee for Kinross-shire Ward (£40,000). Our budget lost to the SNP amendment, which was then set against the Administration’s budget and I voted for the latter because of the noted inclusions above.

If any reader wants further clarity on the budget debate and proposals, I am happy to provide it.

Councillor Michael Barnacle Independent Member for Kinross-shire

Budget Farce continues at PKC

IN A MARATHON DEBATE on Friday (unusually) 6 March, councillors set the budgets for 20/23. In the end there were five separate budgets presented from the Independent Group, Liberal Democrats, SNP, Tory minority administration and Councillors Purves and Stewart. Councillor Stewart was not allowed to partake in the debate because of outstanding investigations by the Standards Commission. I decided, in the interest of democracy, to second Councillor Purves’ budget amendment without prejudicing my later votes in the chamber, mainly because of the work put into it and the number of Kinross-shire issues highlighted within it that were similar to the Independent Group’s budget.

I took the opportunity to lament the inordinate delay of the Standards Commission during 2019 in dealing with referrals to them involving myself and Councillors Purves and Stewart, which I regard as an affront to natural justice that should be addressed by the Scottish Government.

The Independent Group’s budget had been set at a Council Tax increase of 2.5% for 2020/21 and at 3% for the 2 following years. This compared with the Liberal Democrats 4.83% for 2020/21 and 5% for the 2 following years; SNP’s 4.28% for 2020/21 and 4% for the 2 following years and the Tory’s 4% for all 3 years. Despite this lower increase, the Independent Group were still able to reject proposed savings put forward by officers in relation to the instrumental music service charges increases, further removal of the school crossing patrollers and primary swimming, reinstatement of the budget for teacher numbers in secondary schools, winter maintenance budget reinstated, etc. whilst providing additional funding for libraries, Live Active Leisure, text books in schools, electronic bus signs, Women’s Aid, roads investment, bloom groups, unadopted roads, dropped kerbs and community transport. In relation to Kinross-shire, the Independent Group proposed reinstatement of the previous budget cut to school crossing patrollers where no 20-mph speed limit (i.e. A977 in Crook of Devon) on safety grounds, resources for a Kinross-shire ‘Pilot’ Area Committee, feasibility studies for a railway link to Kinross and Regional Park initiatives (Ochil Hills and extension of Lomond Hills to Lochleven) plus a re-assessment of the local landscape designations lost for the Cleish Hills and Devon Gorge (after a flawed consultant exercise).

Unfortunately, following a recess for deliberations and negotiation, the Independent Group’s budget did not pass, and I particularly lamented the lack of a mention of Kinrossshire issues in the budget proposals of the Liberal Democrats (Perthshire councillors only present), SNP and Tories.

The final budget motions from the SNP and Tories were set against each other, SNP at 3.72% council tax increase for 20/21 and 4% for the 2 following years with 4.28% increase per annum for Tories, with the Tory amendment being passed by one vote, with Liberal support. It is interesting to note the compounded interest rates for council tax increases over the 5-year period of this council term put forward by the political groups viz – Independent Group 14.8%, Liberal Democrats 23.67%, SNP 19% and Tories 21.5%.

I noted that the Independent Group would have taken £747,000 net out of reserves, compared with £1,950,000 by the Tory amendment and £2,634,000 by the SNP amendment.

I reiterated again, for the third time, that this budget setting process should be reviewed to allow for 2 separate meetings, a week apart, for political groups to present their proposals and then allow time for negotiation to produce, in the end, a better budget outcome for our constituents than a couple of hours of frantic discussion. I have asked our Chief Executive to look at this again for future years.

Letter sent to John Nicolson MP

Dear John

Imminent Bank Closures in Kinross-shire

We are writing to you following the announcements that our county is set to lose its two remaining banks this year, meaning that Kinross-shire will then be the only county in Scotland without a bank branch.

We are extremely concerned at this trend on bank closures because there appears no dialogue between banks when considering same, a lack of adequate public consultation, which even if it takes place appears not to be listened to, with ‘a complete disregard’ for the financial needs of local businesses and communities. Closures particularly impact upon businesses with significant cash income and elderly members of our communities who may not have their own transport and have to rely on an ‘inadequate’ local bus service.

The closure of the larger Bank of Scotland branch in Kinross, planned in August, will be the loss of the last bank in our county, which hitherto had 4 banks in Kinross High Street, plus facilities in Milnathort. Given the current increase in development, population and visitors for Kinross-shire, this decision makes no sense and should be reconsidered. It is clear from representations we have received that there is an absolute need to retain a bank branch in Kinross-shire.

It is time for government to act on these bank closures and accept the findings of the Scottish Affairs Committee at Westminster in their report of 23 July 2019 on ‘Access to Cash in Scotland’. This called on banks to ensure that every large burgh town should have at least one banking facility retained, which we suggest should apply to the whole of the UK. This should be the minimum requirement of Government to the banking sector in response to the fact that the UK Government rescued them from financial implosion at the time of the previous financial crisis, but banks have shown no gratitude for that and continue to declare the mantra that ‘nobody uses banks any more’ when every time we go into a bank there is a queue!

We ask you to put pressure on your parliamentary colleagues for action, within the financial sector, to halt the current level of bank closures, pending a policy to safeguard an appropriate level of banking facility outlined above. This should not be a ‘party political’ issue but one for all parliamentarians to address on behalf of the communities they purport to represent.

Yours sincerely,

Cllr Michael Barnacle

Independent Member for Kinross-shire

Cllr Richard Watters

SNP Member for Kinross-shire

Email sent to Cllr Murray Lyle

Dear Murray,

COUNCIL BUDGET DEBATE, Fossoway School Crossing Patroller on A977

I was disappointed at the outcome of the budget debate last Friday and the absence of dialogue between your administration and the Independent Group of Councillors and will be writing to you separately about that shortly.

However, there is one consequence of the decision made that has almost immediate effect that I seek your help with; namely the imminent removal of the above crossing patroller from her post at the end of the current school term, despite works at the school road junction being delayed until May 2020 under the A977 mitigation scheme. Whilst I appreciate that the further removal of school crossing patrollers suggested by officers was rejected by your administration’s budget motion, this did not include the Independent Group’s proposal to reinstate the previous cuts to school crossing patrollers where no 20 mph speed limit is in place, which is the case on Main Street in Crook of Devon. This proposal was at a minor cost of £35,000 for 2020/21 and I am making a plea to you, on safety grounds and within the context of the current 20mph trial, to halt this job termination where such lower speed limits are not in place.

Councillor Michael Barnacle

Independent Member for Kinross-shire