Eastleigh Council bosses are set to axe holiday playschemes for youngsters in a bid to balance the books.

In another move civic bosses want to raise cash by charging for use of residents' only parking spaces in the town centre for the first time since the scheme was introduced in 1973.

Under the parking proposals councillors will be recommended to introduce fees for permits for six existing parking zones in Eastleigh town centre plus another three proposed zones from November 1.

It would mean that residents would get their first parking permit free but have to pay £30 for a second, £60 for a third and £90 for a fourth.

Proposals would also see an annual £30 fee for carers' permits - issued to professionals such as doctors, nurses, education departments and social services - plus a £30 annual fee for business permits rising to £60 for a second vehicle, £90 for a third and £120 for a fourth.

The proposals will be discussed by councillors in the borough Cabinet on Thursday.

They are part of a council budget that will includes a proposed 1.5 per cent council tax rise, meaning an average Band D property in a non-parished area of the borough would rise from £145.10 to £147.67.

Added to that would be the demands from parish and town councils where appropriate, Hampshire County Council's levy plus the amounts charged by the county's fire and police services.

Apart from the parish and town levies, the other charges are not yet known, but will be by the time Eastleigh officially sets its budget later this month.

The budget, which also includes axing the borough's tourism unit, has come under fire.

Labour group leader Councillor Peter Luffman claimed the Lib Dem administration was "sacrificing services completely".

He hit out at the loss of four posts in the tourism unit and slammed the move to axe the holiday playscheme.

Cllr Luffman also dubbed the move to bring in charging for residents parking permits an "indirect tax on the local community" and added: "It seems to me this is just the first step and eventually everybody will be paying for parking permits."

Deputy leader of the Conservative group, Councillor Colin Davidovitz, said said charges had already risen for things like hiring sporting facilities and cemetery fees and said he believed moves to charge for parking permits would go down like a lead balloon.

He labelled the move to drop the holiday playscheme as "appalling", adding: "It has been something that has been very much valued by young families.

"I can see lots of areas where savings could be made without affecting front line services - particularly in procurement and some of the bureaucratic processes of the council."

But council leader Keith House defended the plans, adding: "We said to Eastleigh residents that we would give them the certainty to plan their own finances by finding efficiency savings each year to allow us to come in below inflation. That is a promise to be kept and will mean most residents will pay just a few pence extra each week for borough council services."

A council report on the parking charges plans says Eastleigh is the only authority in Hampshire currently operating a completely free scheme and the estimated cost of running the borough scheme for the coming financial year shows a £61,965 deficit.