The Wirral budget balancing act - crunch meeting tonight. What could its outcome mean for us?

A crunch council meeting later today will have a huge role in the future of Europa Pools, the Williamson Art Gallery and other much-loved services.

Wirral Council's Policy and Resources (P&R) Committee is meeting at 6pm this evening to discuss the authority's perilous budget situation.

The council needs to save £16.5m to balance its budget.

Proposals sent out to the public for consultation before Christmas included several cuts to leisure services.

A Council Tax rise of 5% is also included in Wirral Council's budget plans.

The P&R committee, made up of councillors from across the political spectrum, but with Labour represented more than any other group, will put forward a plan which determine the future of facilities such as the Williamson which many locals desperately want to keep.

The plan will then go to a full council meeting on March 1 for approval.

The possible cuts which have drawn most attention include the move to three-weekly bin collections, which would save the authority £180,000, the closure of Europa Pools (£640,000 saving), the closure of the Williamson Art Gallery (£212,000 saving), the closure of public toilets (£142,000 saving) and the ending of the borough's school crossing patrols (£276,300 saving).

A proposal to increase parking charges and expand them to places which currently do not charge has also received much attention.

This would earn the authority an extra £1m.

What do councillors say?

Cllr Janette Williamson, leader of Wirral Council, did not want to comment ahead of tonight's crucial meeting.

But the Labour councillor has given an indication as to her party's position in recent weeks.

Last week, Cllr Williamson said she told officers to come up with alternatives to many of the savings options.

She said: "I will not seek to balance the books by removing much-loved amenities or affecting the quality of life for our residents."

Cllr Jeff Green, the leader of the council's Conservative group, said: "I've been clear all along that any budget which includes going to three-weekly bin collections, closing the Williamson, sacking lollipop ladies and closing public toilets, we cannot support.

"The government has given the council over £200m to deal with COVID, a lot of these [budget] issues were at play before COVID, the council has run down its reserves and used one-off savings. A lot of this has come to roost."

However, the money does not fully cover Wirral Council's COVID costs, but compensates the council for 75% of the last 95% of virus related losses.

The Tory leader added that Wirral Council should be looking at prioritising cuts to back office functions, such as human resources and finance, over closing services the public rely on.

Cllr Green said he agreed with the need to increase Council Tax by 5% this year, which includes a precept for adult social care, given the immense pressure on the service.

For the Liberal Democrats, Cllr Phil Gilchrist said he would be opposed to any budget which seeks to close the Williamson, move to three-weekly bin collections, or ceases school crossing patrols.

In a statement last week, the Lib Dem group leader said: "The public expects us to deliver what we can fairly and efficiently. A little room does exist to drop some damaging savings. The COVID crisis has knocked our economy for six.

"Our priority is to get Wirral through this crisis, set a budget for these difficult times and stop the wrangling."

Green councillor Pat Cleary, who represents Birkenhead and Tranmere, said: "I am very concerned about the cuts. Europa Pools is at the top of the list, I wouldn't support any budget which closed it."

Cllr Cleary said he was also worried about the threat to school crossing patrols, public toilets and the Williamson.

The Birkenhead and Tranmere councillor was also against the move to three-weekly bin collections, saying more recycling infrastructure needed to be in place before any such move should be considered.

Cllr Cleary reluctantly supported the need to increase Council Tax by 4.99%, saying it was "outrageous" that the government was seeking to deal with the social care crisis through local taxation rather than developing a nationwide structured approach.

The leader of the Independent group, Cllr Moira McLaughlin, said: "The council's budget is in a very serious position. I am not supportive of the move to three-weekly bin collections. I will also look for amendments which support the Williamson, it's my belief that it's a great asset to the community."

Cllr McLaughlin added that she would look for a way to achieve a "less drastic option" than the closure of Europa Pools.

This could mean keeping competition facilities open, but closing the fun pool, for instance.

On Council Tax, the Independent councillor said she knew people were hard pressed, but the council must produce a balanced budget while protecting vital services.