Scots communities left 'on brink of destitution' if Jeremy Hunt slashes public spending

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Communities will be left on "the brink of destitution" if Jeremy Hunt carries out plans to slash billions of pounds in public spending, the deputy leader of Scotland's largest council has warned.Councillor Ricky Bell said local authority budgets were already "beyond stretched" as a result of record inflation and soaring energy prices.Glasgow City Council faces a funding shortfall of almost £120 million and the SNP administration must make a series of tough spending choices in the coming months.It comes as Hunt, the UK Chancellor, prepares to deliver his Autumn Statement tomorrow which is expected to contain a raft of tax rises and spending cuts.Bell told the Record: "The consequences of what looks likely to be passed on to Scotland’s public services will be catastrophic and communities, already reeling from 12 years of Tory austerity, are being pushed to the brink of destitution. "Budgets which are already beyond stretched will simply be unable to cope.

I fear that Mr Hunt’s remedy for sorting the consequences of the Tory’s failure to get to grips with soaring inflation and the energy market will be a critical blow to many services Glaswegians rely on."It’s difficult to see how we can function as our citizens expect with the pressures already created by the UK’s economic environment without another hammer blow."Glasgow City Council receives around 80 per cent of its budget direct from the Scottish Government and officials are working under the assumption local authorities will get a flat cash settlement - meaning a funding cut in real terms.It comes just weeks after the Record revealed how council chiefs will sell Kelvingrove Art Gallery and the City Chambers to meet its outstanding equal pay claims.Bell, who holds the