Destructive impact

Rother is now forced to make substantial cuts to its services. East Sussex County Council has already had to accept a budget reduction of £8.5m in 2010 and the announced £2.4 million is cut in the council’s children’s services budget and the nearly £2 million cut from its transport and environment budget will have wide reaching social implications. As a result of the spending review Rother District Council and East Sussex County Council will have their budgets cut by more than a quarter. The police and welfare budgets are going to be hit and the community and voluntary organisations will suffer. There will also be the knock-on effect on the voluntary and private sector who are dependent on public sector funding.  If the Government starves the council of funding, investment in Bexhill will come to a halt, businesses will suffer and as a result we won’t be able to grow the local economy. The empty shops in the town we see now will be joined by many more as the cuts make their impact.

It would be better if the cutbacks in public expenditure were more gradual if we want to give the Bexhill a chance to re-build for the future.

Bexhill is facing a bleak future, there will be major job losses in the public and private sector and there is little prospect that will help the town provide growth and job creation. As a consequence job cuts are inevitable.

Carl Maynard, the leader of the Conservative Rother District Council, should tell the people of Bexhill precisely what services are going to be cut and also how many jobs will be lost at the town hall or as a result of the cut back in grants and withdrawal of service contracts.

Andrew Fleming

Bexhill and Battle Labour Party