Councillor Phil Davies, Leader of the Council, said:

“We have a responsibility to set a fair, sustainable and balanced budget. This is a challenge which gets more difficult every year, as austerity policies continue to bite.

Once again, this year, we are facing an almost unimaginable financial challenge. Continued reductions in our support from Central Government, combined with growing demand for our services, mean we must find ways to reduce our spending – or raising our income – by £45 million just next year.

This is on top of the more than £200 million in cuts we have been forced into delivering since austerity began. This means we must make ever more difficult decisions, but we will never shirk our responsibilities to Wirral residents. We will always find ways to use our diminishing resources to improve our borough and the quality of life our residents can enjoy.

We will invest public resources where it will deliver the most impact – in creating jobs, in improving the local environment, and in protecting our most vulnerable children, adults and families.

We will deliver on all of our promises to Wirral residents. Our medium-term financial strategy provides a budget for next year, which delivers on our priorities for Wirral and meets our principles as an Administration – it protects our most vulnerable, it shields the services our residents rely on most from the worst of the cuts, and it safeguards our workforce.

Even in these most challenging circumstances, it is a budget we can be proud of and a budget I believe Wirral residents will support.”