HYNDBURN Council is set to increase its share of council tax by a whopping 10 per cent.
But when demands from Lancashire County Council, the police and the fire service are taken into account, the rise will equate to an overall jump of 5.8 per cent, fractionally above the Govern-ment's capping limit.
An annual budget of £12.6M will be set next week if the full council agrees to the recommendations of the ruling Cabinet.
Council leader Peter Britcliffe said every effort was being made to reduce the council tax further in time for that meeting on Tuesday.
He said: "We are working to protect services as well as we can but we are still trying to make as many savings as possible. If you look at the figures coming in from other areas, the shortfall from Government and the problems that have beset Hyndburn, I breathe a big sigh of relief that council tax payers will not be unduly punished."
"For most homes in Hyndburn this is equivalent to just over £1 a month increase or under 4p a day for services provided by the council."
The figure was reached after council officers were ordered to make cuts of 15 per cent in their departments' budgets.
Savings, already highly sought after to cut the council's £1.8M shortfall, have been found through a variety of ways, including clawing back £78,000-worth of area council grants for a year, reducing computer rental and maintenance costs by £26,000, and wiping £25,000 from the training and conferences' budget.
Other savings include a reduction in corporate marketing from £15,100 to £10,100, saving £15,000 from the Christmas decorations and tree expenses, and cutting a whopping £50,000 from the expenses of employees working on the Elevate project.
Councillor Jean Battle, leader of the Labour opposition, said: "It has been an extremely difficult budget period and we have worked hard to keep council tax demands as low as possible. But some of the cuts I don't agree with. We have had to work together, and in a way that has compromised us but Hyndburn residents have to come first."
If agreed, the council tax will be £847 for a band A home, £987 band B, £1,128 band C, £1,269 band D, £1,551 band E, £1,833 band F, £2,115 band G amd £2,538 band H.
