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20
Jul 2020
County council faces £126m coronavirus cost over three years
North Yorkshire County Council has estimated that responding to coronavirus could cost the authority £126 million over the next three years.
Cllr Gareth Dadd, cabinet member for finance at the county council, is expected to tell councillors at a full council meeting that uncertainty still remained around future costs but that the authority is “well placed” to deal with it.
It comes as the council is anticipating a deficit of £73 million by the end of this financial year, which reduces to £39 million after government funding is taken into account.
Council officials have already said that the authority can avoid bankruptcy and would not need to issue a section 114 notice - which bans any further spending in dire financial circumstances.
Read more:
- County council ‘can avoid bankruptcy’, says leader
- Scale of Harrogate council’s coronavirus deficit unclear
- County council needs more funding to tackle future coronavirus costs
But, Cllr Dadd will tell councillors next week that it is “extremely likely” that there will be legacy costs as a result of the pandemic.
He will say:
Meanwhile, local authorities across the country have warned that without support many will be forced to issue bankruptcy notices.
The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government announced a further £500 million package of funding earlier this month to support council spending pressures.
Funding allocations have yet to be revealed, but the scheme is expected to reimburse authorities for lost income and allow council tax and business rates deficits to be paid over three years instead of one.
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