Last updated at 12:00, Monday, 25 February 2013

A SERIES of devastating cuts in services in Copeland has been confirmed.

Almost every service cut proposed by Copeland Borough Council will happen, it was decided at a budget-setting meeting on Thursday.

These include the closure of Whitehaven’s tourist information centre and all the borough’s public toilets, as well as the cancellation of Christmas lights, the concessionary travel scheme and doorstep collections of cardboard and plastic recycling.

It will reduce the frequency of public grass cutting, and remove street furniture (seating, bollards, gazebos etc) and public flower displays. Charges will also increase for council-owned car parks, cemeteries and crematoriums.

The only service to be spared the axe is garden (brown bin) collections. These collections will continue for now, but will cease during the winter months. Plans to charge residents for having black bins replaced have been scrapped.

Copeland Council has been forced to slash services after having one-third of its budget cut by the government. It was the eighth-worst-hit council in the country and must save around £3 million by 2015.

Around 20 jobs will be lost in the cuts, a reduction from the anticipated 30 to 40. However, a number of employees have already left and will not be replaced.

Elaine Woodburn, leader of Copeland Council, said: “This is the worst report I have ever had to put before the council, and this is not a good day for Copeland. This budget will diminish the quality of life of the people we represent but we have no choice but to introduce it. But this is not Copeland’s decision – it was made in Downing Street.”

There had been hopes that some more of the under-threat services could have been saved, but just before Christmas the grant the council received from the government was revealed to be even lower than anticipated.

David Moore, leader of Copeland’s Conservative group, said: “Despite these cuts, there are things in Copeland to be proud of, and it’s time we as councillors earned our crust and carried out some hard work in our communities.”

Copeland formally proposed the cuts in October.

The council continues to urge community groups to step forward and take on some of the services that the council will no longer pay for, and chief executive Paul Walker says that negotiations are ongoing with a number of interested parties.

First published at 14:01, Monday, 25 February 2013
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk