Councillors have engaged in a war of words over Reading council’s £4.6 million projected overspend as top Labour councillors have defended their record.
A report into Reading Borough Council’s finances for the third quarter of the 2025/26 financial year shows that the council has a predicted overspend of £4.633 million.
This figure was mentioned at a meeting of the council’s policy committee on Monday, March 16.
It was indicated that the projected overspend would be covered from the council’s reserves.
Councillor Rob White, the leader of the opposition, said: “The getting on for £5 million of overspend, although it is less than last year, is still clearly unsustainable, the reserves that the council has have been going down year on year, it’s not a bottomless pit. They will run out, so it will be great to see, one year, an overspend of nothing!
“I can keep dreaming.”
Ellie Emberson, lead councillor for resources, stated the council operated a budget surplus of £3 million in 2021/22 and £4 million in 2022/23.
Cllr Emberson (Labour, Coley) said: “That was against a backdrop of austerity. If my memory serves me correctly, at one of those meetings, the Greens brought forward a budget proposal which would have cost us more money, and taken money from the reserves.
“And indeed, when we had our full council meeting, I don’t remember any alternative budget being offered, so I don’t think we’ll take any lectures from you on budgeting.”
The Greens proposed changes to the budget in 2021/22 and 2022/23, both of which were rejected by Labour councillors.
Defending the administration, Liz Terry, the council leader, said its general reserves will increase from £8.9 million to £11.4 million in the coming years.
She contrasted that with the Liberal Democrat controlled councils, the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, which had a reserve of £15 million, but put council tax up by nine per cent in 2024/25, and West Berkshire Council, which has a £10-14 million reserve after receiving a government bailout.
Cllr Terry (Labour, Coley) then went on the attack against Green run Bristol City Council, which needs to find savings of £41 million next year to balance its budget.
She said: “Guess how much they put their council taxes up?
“They put it up by the maximum that they were allowed to put it up, 4.99 per cent, just like everyone else!”
Addressing cllr White, she said: “He says ‘once again getting less for more’ – I think you will find this is the reality of having to run local authorities in the current climate.
“We can see down the road that if you are a Green-run authority, what do you get?
“You get the reality of what it’s like to be in control and running the budget.
“So all this nonsense of ‘less for more’, no thank you, we’ll have none of that, cllr White!”
Replying, he said: “That is the best abuse of the chair I’ve seen for some time!
“It’s so disappointing that we’ve gone from having a Tory government to a Labour government that just behaves like the Tories.
“The Labour government is screwing over every council, then that’s why councils are putting up council tax, because the government is not funding them properly!”
