Council must save £30m

Cllr Abdul Jabbar

OLDHAM Council is trying to find ways to save £30million while maintaining services and avoiding job losses.

The council has already had to save £176 million over the past six years. Members of the public have been invited to suggest ways more can be saved (at www.oldham.gov.uk/letstalkbudget) or on Twitter (@OldhamCouncil) using the hashtag #letstalkbudget.

Budget cuts mean some services will have to be delivered in partnership with other organisations such as the police, fire service and NHS. It will also mean reducing some services and in some cases stopping them altogether.

Councillor Abdul Jabbar, Cabinet member for finance and HR, said: “By 2017, the Government will have cut more than half our total budget. We have been squeezed and squeezed and still we are creating new and innovative ways to provide vital services.

“Every service has been looked at, and continues to be looked at, to see how we can deliver it for less but mitigate the impact it has on the public.

“The measures we are outlining today are only proposals at this stage. It is vital that all employees, residents and trade unions continue to co-operate with us in this process in a constructive and realistic way — which can help us shape our final options.”