ACC Proposed Cutbacks

[stewarty27]

The common good fund was instrumental in the setting up of Aberdeen City Libraries. Perhaps they need to help out again.. Cuz Im f.ucke.d if I know what else they spend this money on. £33 M is supposed to be the figure.

[Stupie82]

This is grim reading. It's depressing to read, mothballing all the libraries, bar Central. The time I spent as a kid in Torry library is a great memory. It would seem the city is free-falling to sh1thole status rapidly.

https://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/fp...-budget-plans/

Its a lack of funding from central government that is the issue. Councils never raised the tax for about a decade, while buildings deteriorated, the cost of living increased and while the central government kept asking for them to make cut backs. The Council can be a shower of ****e at times, but I actually sympathise with them on this, as its been coming for years.

We are spending £60m+ on trying to sort buildings like libraries, town halls etc. One town hall in my local area, is about 100 years old and was put up for being shut down, yet it wasnt because there is a woman who complained to her councillor that she uses it every Friday night for bowling. It is very rarely used any other time. So here is a building that needs 50K plus work done to it due to its age, but even though the council tried to sell it to the local community, no one wants to touch with a barge pole, but they are willing to use it for a minimal fee and keep it open, expecting it to be repaired by the council.

Now some of you will say that is the councils responsibility, but we have massively underfunded councils in Scotland and we cant keep everything open anymore. Its like the council in Moray taking away lollipop ladies and everyone is up in arms about it. Its not the councils responsibility to ensure kids get to school safely. There are some buses running every day that pick up 3 kids who live 10 miles from their primary school. Again this isnt free.

We all pay council tax, but some of the expectations or understandings are abysmal. I see it every day, "I pay my council tax for my bin to only get collected every 2 weeks... what a waste of money". Well no, it pays for schools, doctors, roads, infrastructure, grass cutting, environment, town halls, libraries etc etc. There is a breakdown of where it all goes and i think its a miracle we can even afford what we do.

Im not sticking up for them completely, they make costly mistakes as well, but generally speaking they are underfunded, under paid and get a lot of sh!t because people dont understand where the money goes.