Decision day in Oxfordshire - will the Council be able to ratify its budget?

As I was heading home from London yesterday, I received a text from my husband Chris, about a tweet from BBC Radio Oxford. They were reporting that Independent Councillor, Lynda Atkins, had withdrawn her support for the Conservative budget due to be ratified today.

Ms Atkins is one of three Independents in an alliance with the Conservative majority, so her withdrawal of support is significant. If the opposition parties and other Independents vote with her today, then it is likely that the budget will not go through. In a way, this should come as no surprise. Last week I commented that the cuts are going so deep now, they are affecting the people that David Cameron relies  on for support. But, if the budget is not passed it will have huge implications.

Firstly, it means that the Conservative Councillors will have to re-look at the finances to try and find some compromises. (In fact, it looks like this is already happening, as the BBC has reported the Conservatives have adjourned the meeting to look for common ground.) This means that cuts will still go ahead, but some of the more negative impacts will probably be minimised, which is a major win for anti-cuts campaigners.

Secondly, even if the budget does go through today, it is extremely embarrassing for the Prime Minister that his local Conservative Council should be struggling to get the cuts approved. 

Thirdly, when combined with the news that increased death rates across the country are linked to social care cuts, all the signs are that the arguments for austerity are becoming increasingly untenable. As Lynda Atkins said yesterday, this budget 'offers no hope to the people of Oxfordshire'. Austerity never has, and it never will.

As a former council employee, I understand the risks of the budget not passing today. If the finances aren't settled by the end of March, then vital services across the country will be affected. However, sometimes for change to happen, we need to take risks. So, despite the fact talks are happening right now, I hope they don't succeed. Because, if Oxfordshire, one of the wealthiest counties in the country, cannot afford to make these cuts, then no-one can.  

For too long, the government has been relying on the fact that councils will push through terrible cuts because the option of not having a budget is too big a risk.  It is high time councillors up and down the ountry stood up to this, stood up for their communities and said enough to these cuts. It is time for everyone to walk away from austerity for good.

Let Oxfordshire take the first step.