'Difficult decisions' amid city council's new £26m budget gap

Nottingham City Council's finance chief says "difficult decisions" are needed this year after a new budget gap of £26 million was revealed. The authority says it is operating in a period of "unprecedented financial uncertainty", with an increased demand on its services and the rising cost of energy being among the factors blamed for the deficit.

Councillor Audra Wynter, the Deputy Leader of Nottingham City Council and its Portfolio Holder for Finance & HR, said: "The identification of a £26m in-year budget gap is significant and serious, and some difficult decisions about transforming the way we deliver services and doing some things differently will be needed, along with strong financial discipline.

But the authority also acknowledges that its past financial errors are continuing to have an impact on its "resilience." These issues included the collapse of Robin Hood Energy and money which should have spent on its housing stock being illegally spent elsewhere. The council therefore says that if the overspend is not fully met from "mitigating actions" such as savings, it will have to undertake a "further review of reserves" to see if any other money can be released. But the council says using reserves for another year to balance its budget would signal a "lack of financial sustainability and a lack of financial grip."

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