OPPOSITION councillors have slammed central government for tightening its grip on budget-stricken Trafford Council – but the leading party said “putting the cap out for more” is not the answer.

Councillors debated the 2017/18 budget proposal in the town hall chamber on Wednesday.

The debate last for more than two hours and executive member for finance, Cllr Patrick Myers, opened.

“During the last eight years the council has had to bridge budget pressures of almost £113m made up of reducing government grant and increasing demand for our services, especially in social care,” he said.

“This has been no easy challenge for a lean authority like Trafford and we have had to take some tough decisions to produce this balanced budget. The next three years will not provide any respite.”

Shadow executive member for finance Tom Ross pointed out that despite the age of austerity in 2015, it is entering its eighth year in 17/18 – with at least two more years to come.

He, like other opposition councillors, urged the council to speak up against the crippling cuts imposed on it by central government.

He called the budget for 17/18 the most “precarious financial balancing act” he has ever seen and pointed out the use of budget reserves and council tax surplus to close the widened gap.

Cllr Ross said that reserves and one-off incomes are being used to “prop-up” the budget and that the dwindling reserves – from £11m to £6m in four years – illustrates a “dangerous trend in our finances”.

Leader of Trafford Lib Dems Ray Bowker said the party could not support the budget proposals.

He echoed Cllr Ross’ sentiment that councils are feeling the squeeze from central government, making local government “unworkable and almost impossible to maintain”.

He said that the deferred school crossings should not be subject to a second consultation as “lives were more important than savings”. He also called for the unpopular garden waste proposal to be scrapped, fearing it would lead to an increase in flytipping.

“What is the point in having consultations if convincing results are ignored,” he added.

Cllr Jane Baugh criticised the local and central government cuts on children’s services and referenced the closure of youth clubs and the controversial national funding formula.

She said: “We reject to logic of imposed austerity and we ask you to support us in restoring real local democracy to enable us to provide decent services you should be out there banging the drums and telling your government, enough is enough what harm they are doing, Trafford residents deserve nothing less.”

Cllr Michael Whetton said that the Labour group failed in its responsibility as the opposition and not come up with alternative budget or prove that it can be done better.

“We know we can’t but they haven’t even given it a shot,” he said.

“These are still times that require difficult choices. Just because the Conservative-run economy nationally is faring well and employment continues to grow it does not mean we are out of Gordon Brown’s woods.”

Cllr Stephen Anstee said that “getting the cap out” and asking for more money was not the answer, stating that the “money tree doesn’t grow in the council’s garden” and said the council is doing more in the way of protecting services – such as sustaining bin collections and libraries – than neighbouring Labour-controlled authorities.

Cllr Sophie Taylor called the cuts over the past few years “relentless and savage” and said the government has continued its “assault on Trafford by starving it of funds”.

She said the adult and social care investment is welcomed but said it does not compensate for the “barbaric” cuts in recent years.

“It does not mask the seismic gap in the budget, the astronomical rise in council tax or the plundering of council reserves,” she added.

Cllr Mike Freeman said Conservatives were obsessed with the size and shape of the council at the expense of delivering services.

There was criticism from a number of councillors regarding the council’s contract with Amey, with some saying that it increased savings but reduced service, creating a “false economy”.

Conservative councillors reiterated the lack of a Labour alternative budget and highlighted the number of capital investments being made, including leisure and town centres revamps.

Labour Party leader Cllr Andrew Western said: “This budget is a sticking plaster, papering over the cracks. It is held together by a series of one-off funding sources and a massive raid on reserves.

“We have our worst funding gap yet. It was bad enough in November when we were told it was going to be £22m but here we are with more than £25m in terms of funding gap. It is ridiculous, how on earth is it getting worse, not better? Clearly austerity has failed miserably.”

Concluding Trafford Council Leader Cllr Sean Anstee said: “For every year, since 2004, we have balanced our budget, which cannot be said for other authorities in Greater Manchester.”

He added: “We are accepting that difficult decisions that need to be made but it is this administration that is prepared to take those decisions, because to duck it would only serve to cause even greater concern in our communities than we need to do when setting a budget.”

The budget was passed 31 votes to 23.