£17m cuts for Haringey in coalition Government's first 100 days (From Haringey Independent)

£17m cuts for Haringey in coalition Government's first 100 days

2:00pm Wednesday 18th August 2010 in

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HARINGEY has suffered budget cuts of nearly £17million under the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition after 100 days in Government.

The sum of £16,895,000 was revealed by Haringey Council's finance boss Councillor Joe Goldberg who said the "staggering sum" had put programmes for schools and youth people and hospital services at risk.

He said the local authority had been left with no choice but to make dramatic reductions to services including scrapping its free swimming initiative.

Cllr Goldberg said: "As this coalition reaches its 100 days, it is staggering that residents have lost £168,000 every day this Tory government has been propped up by the Lib Dems.

"We have lost money for much-needed school places, free schools meals for children living in poverty and programmes to tackle teenage pregnancy - and this is just council services. In addition, budgets are being slashed for policing and the local NHS has been exposed to cuts of nearly £22m, putting vital A&E and maternity services at the Whittington in jeopardy."

He attacked Lib Dem equalities minister Lynne Featherstone, MP for Hornsey and Wood Green, for "rubberstamping" cuts driven by the Tories instead of sticking up for her constituents.

Among the cuts is loss of £367,000 to help business growth in the area and £438,000 lost to schools for the Harnessing Technology Grant intended to help schools reorganise their IT facilities.

A sum of £8,570,000 to create more primary school places to deal with growing population size was also withdrawn and will now be funded with emergency loans so plans can still go-ahead.

Haringey's Youth Capital Fund to create positive activities for young people lost £80,000 and £497,000 of Playbuilder funding allocated under the former Labour Government to develop and refurbish play facilities was also scrapped.

Councillor Robert Gorrie, leader of the Haringey Liberal Democrats, said he challenged the Cllr Goldberg to offer alternative solutions to clearing debts his party created during their 13 years of Government.

He condemned his attack as a "pathetic attempt to deflect attention" from 40 years of financial mismanagement under Haringey's Labour group.

Cllr Gorrie said: "The Labour-run council has more money frozen in Icelandic banks that any other London borough. Cllr Goldberg's pathetic attempts to deflect attention from the abysmal performance of Haringey Labout over 40 years of misrule are indicative of the lack of focus and attention being applied to the needs of residents."

He said that the coaltion Goverment would provide more money for Haringey’s poorest schoolchildren, restore the pensions link with earnings, scrap Labour's "wasteful" ID card scheme and lift thousands of Haringey's low paid out of income tax altogether.

"In short, we will do more for the people of Haringey in five years than Labour have in the borough in the last 40", Councillor Gorrie added.