Hampshire County Council consultation

Hampshire County Council is asking for residents’ and stakeholders’ views on ways it could balance its budget in response to continuing pressures on local government funding and increasing demand for core public services. The County Council faces a further estimated budget shortfall of £80 million by April 2021. This is due to reductions in Government funding, growing demand for services, rising costs and inflation.

There are other areas where the County Council would like to introduce a charge to sustain services but is currently prohibited from doing so by legislation. Within the consultation the County Council suggests that it could lobby central Government to change current statute. The examples of where the suggested legislative change could help to maintain current services are:

• allowing means testing/charging for Home to School Transport;
• allowing councils to charge £10 for issuing an Older Person’s Bus Pass (which lasts for five years) could raise a potential £400,000-£500,000 per year;
• permitting councils to charge 25% of the per journey fare for concessionary travel. A
charge of 50p per journey could raise a potential £4.7 million per year.

To respond to Hampshire County Council's consultation please visit their website