The York Council has been forced to admit that the amount that it is paying in debt charges (interest payments on money that it has borrowed) has risen by 56% since Labour took office in May 2011.
Interest rates during the period have been stable.
Prior to the elections in 2011, the then LibDem led Council, and it’s predecessors, had incurred debts which involved average monthly interest payments of £418,000.
Now that figure has spiralled to an average of over £651,000.
The Labour Council have been heavily criticised for a “borrow and spend” policy which has seen the Council’s debts more than double.
The policy has echoes of the last Labour government which increased the countries debt dramatically; a policy which was partly responsible for the subsequent economic crash.
In York, a £20 million “Economic Infrastructure Fund” has been set up. It is being used for a variety of projects but recently announced plans to purchase an “Arts Barge” and use borrowing to fund a “living wage” have come in for particular criticism.
In total the Council will have to find over £10 million during the next financial year to service its debts. That is likely to be at the expense of further cuts to public service standards.
The monthly interest payments made each more since 2010 are:
Month Interest payments Political Control
May-10 £1,260,000 LibDem led
Jun-10 £0 LibDem led
Jul-10 £0 LibDem led
Aug-10 £687,000 LibDem led
Sep-10 £10,000 LibDem led
Oct-10 £298,000 LibDem led
Nov-10 £1,675,000 LibDem led
Dec-10 £0 LibDem led
Jan-11 £0 LibDem led
Feb-11 £688,000 LibDem led
Mar-11 £103,000 LibDem led
Apr-11 £298,000 LibDem led
May-11 £1,750,000 Labour
Jun-11 £0 Labour
Jul-11 £0 Labour
Aug-11 £674,000 Labour
Sep-11 £103,000 Labour
Oct-11 £593,000 Labour
Nov-11 £1,424,000 Labour
Dec-11 £0 Labour
Jan-12 £0 Labour
Feb-12 £775,000 Labour
Mar-12 £103,000 Labour
Apr-12 £592,000 Labour
May-12 £1,502,000 Labour
Jun-12 £0 Labour
Jul-12 £0 Labour
Aug-12 £775,000 Labour
Sep-12 £103,000 Labour
Oct-12 £2,543,000 Labour
Nov-12 £1,436,000 Labour