At a recent meeting, Worthing Borough Council’s Labour administration were unable to give reassurance that night-time security services in our car parks would be protected from budget cuts.
Due to the financial blackhole that the Labour administration has plunged the Council into, residents are now threatened with increased crime and reduced safety at night. Crime is a concern for local residents, and the national Government has supported the police, with over 1000 extra officers recruited for Sussex. Nationally, the Government is also introducing tough new sentences, keeping dangerous criminals off our streets. Yet when it comes to tackling crime, Worthing Borough Council continues to be found lacking, and after already cutting funding to local police is now unable to confirm continued funding for night-time patrols in our car parks.
This bad news is set against a backdrop of continued financial incompetence from the Labour administration, with a report submitted by the Council’s Assistant Director for Finance stating that “The predicted level of reserves undermines the Council’s financial stability and potentially puts Worthing Council in an unsustainable financial position.” And Councillor Turley, Cabinet Member for Resources, when speaking about the financial state of the Council, said the Council has “reserves that are very low.”
This follows a period of mismanagement by the Labour administration, as they have stalled capital projects that would have kept finances on track, such as the redevelopment of Teville Gate, an oven-ready project at the time the Conservative administration left office in May 2022, and which has since seen a quarter of a million pounds wasted on interest charges due to unnecessary and avoidable delays. All of this at a time of rising Council Tax and Labour Councillors increasing their allowances.
As the incumbent Labour administration scramble around to find savings, night-time security services are being put at risk. After already raising Council Tax, increasing car parking charges, and cutting funding to local police; Labour Cabinet Member, Councillor Whorlow was unable to give reassurance that night-time patrols in our town centre car parks would be protected from budget cuts.
This is another show of incompetence from a Labour administration that continues to put Council finances on an unsustainable footing. Now their blunders could lead to cuts to a service that is key to our night-time economy, as well as protecting the most vulnerable. Labour’s continued financial mismanagement once again means that Worthing’s residents will pay the price for Labour’s failure.