Could bankrupt council change tack over cuts?

Things can only get better, or so the unofficial Labour Party anthem tells us.

But will that be true for Birmingham's residents? Those currently living through some of the most brutal cuts to public services in living memory, while also being forced to pay more for the privilege.

Here we have a cacophony of financial struggles in a city which has been overseen by a Labour-led council for the past 12 years.

But could the mood music be changing? If the authors of a recent review of cost-saving measures at the council had their way, the pain on Brummies would be eased.

They say cuts are going too far, too fast – and that the numbers they are based on are not solid enough.

We are well into plans to shave £300m from Birmingham City Council’s budget, including a planned council tax rise of 21% over two years, and those plans are principally to deal with historical financial mismanagement.

There is also a target to sell off £750m of assets by April 2026 as the council contends with other ongoing crises in the shape of equal pay claims and the failure to properly implement IT system Oracle.

Those costs could easily approach £1bn according to the latest estimates, though they have been disputed.

Assets such as the former Birmingham Wheels Site and the Athletes Village flats are two of the higher profile sales to date. But it is the other end of the scale where the impact is likely to be felt more acutely, as the council looks to sell off libraries and community centres.

We have also seen services, everything from school transport for disabled children to bin collections in the crosshairs.

But the political landscape has changed since these plans were first implemented, we now have a new Labour government and a new Labour regional mayor.

This is a Labour-run authority heading for an all-out election in less than two years’ time. After facing a tough general election in Birmingham, the political motivation in the city for key changes becomes stronger with each passing day.

Already, we have seen leading voices singing from the same hymn sheet. Three major Labour-backing unions have called for a change of tack.

West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker said “full consideration” should be given to the idea of changes, and Birmingham Northfield's new Labour MP Laurence Turner has described cost-saving interventions as “rushed”.

Messaging this harmonised rarely happens by accident, or without motive, in politics.

The city council's heavily politicised cost cutting measures have ultimately been rubber stamped by someone who is not a politician.

Max Caller is the man appointed by the former Conservative government to fix the council’s finances after the authority effectively declared itself bankrupt last year.

He has previously been given the moniker "Max the Axe", but could he and his team be facing the chop over the coming months?

He said: “It’s not for me to comment on the political football. We are there because the secretary of state has put us there. The secretary of state can withdraw the directions and we will go.

“But in the meantime, the directions have the force of law. Our job is to help Birmingham City Council take its place back in the mainstream of local government.

“It's not there yet, but it's working very hard to do so.”

For now, the Labour council will sing and dance to the commissioners’ tune. But for how long will depend on whether the Labour government believes savings plans continue to hit the right notes.

Whatever the government decides, and whoever they decide is best placed to solve the city’s financial woes, the challenges facing Birmingham and its residents will not disappear any time soon.

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