COUNCIL chiefs in the New Forest are struggling to balance the books after losing grants worth more than £500,000.
Members of the district council’s ruling Cabinet were told that the hand-outs had been axed since the coalition Government was formed in May.
The authority is currently facing a shortfall of £351,000 and says it will be forced to make “big decisions” in the next few months.
Civic leaders are facing an anxious wait to discover how much money the authority will receive from the Government in 2011-2012 and future financial years.
An announcement is expected to be made next month, followed by a major report to the Cabinet in the new year.
Executive director Bob Jackson cited the uncertainty surrounding local government funding and proposed changes to the housing benefit system, which would also have an impact on councils across the country.
“The situation we’re facing at the moment is a combination of what we do know and what we don’t,” he said.
“There’s going to be an overall reduction in expenditure of 7.25 per cent but we don’t know what the impact will be on different tiers of local government. We do know that a lot of the current ring-fencing of grants will be removed.
“Things will become clearer in December and we’re are planning to bring a full report to Cabinet the following month.”
Council leader Barry Rickman said: “It’s important that we know every detail as the information cascades down and we approach the big decisions.”
Deputy leader Edward Heron added: “We’ve got good, prudent reserves and that gives us the opportunity to think through the changes sensibly.”
Councillor Colin Wise, Cabinet member for finance and efficiency, confirmed that the authority was facing a deficit of £351,000 but said the situation was likely to improve.
He forecast that interest rates would rise, resulting in the council earning more money from its investments.
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