Council Leader Jane Meagher comments on Edinburgh's Budget, which includes a record £1.6 billion investment in housing.
We made some major decisions on Thursday to agree the Council’s spending priorities. We agreed a record £1.6 billion investment in housing, the protection of frontline services and significant sums for education and health and social care services.
I’m proud that we’ve once again delivered a balanced budget that focuses on meeting the needs of Edinburgh’s residents. It is a budget that reinforces our commitment to tackling poverty, prioritising prevention and protecting frontline services for those most in need of our support – all while keeping the increase in Council Tax to one of the lowest, if not the lowest, in the country.
We know that finding somewhere affordable to live is a challenge for many in Edinburgh. So we have agreed an additional investment over the next five years – one of the largest housing interventions by a local authority in modern times. This will provide thousands of much-needed affordable new homes for families, while reducing the use of costly and unsuitable temporary accommodation and helping us to reduce the scourge of poverty on this city.
Alongside the additional £6 million we’ve pledged towards social care, we’re prioritising support for some of our most vulnerable children and young people across the city. We’re investing in early family support, keeping children with their families wherever we can. We’re expanding support for pupils with additional support needs, with extra staff in both our special schools and mainstream schools. And we’re committing £86 million towards progressing major extensions at both Craigroyston and Queensferry High Schools.
It’s important to remember that we’re not working in isolation and, having listened to our third sector partners, we’re today committing an additional £4 million to help them continue playing an essential role in supporting our residents – and, crucially, to plan with more certainty and security.
This ambitious budget clearly demonstrates the strength of listening to our communities and working across party lines to do what’s best for the residents of Edinburgh.
We remain the lowest funded council in Scotland, which poses a real challenge when setting our budget each year. Despite this, officers have produced an innovative budget that prioritises the services that most matter to the people of Edinburgh – from investing in our roads, pavements and parks to caring for our youngest, oldest and most vulnerable residents.
This is a budget that protects, and in many cases enhances, these frontline services. But it also allows us to protect our residents and businesses from bearing too much of the financial burden that goes with it. I’m proud, then, that we’ve been able to freeze most fees and charges for the next 12 months.
We will continue working closely across political parties and Council services to ensure these commitments deliver the best value for Edinburgh’s residents. However I’m confident that this package of spending priorities hits the right balance for the Capital.