© South Wales Evening Post - 12 September 2005
A Bill for up to £3.2 million in extra costs has hit Swansea Council leaving city leaders looking at ways to save money. Since the closure of Tir John landfill site the expected costs of waste disposal have shot up by over £2.5 million.
Almost £400,000 extra is needed for special education in the city.
Plus a national rise in electricity has seen street lighting bills rise by £208,000.
At the beginning of the financial year £3.9 million was set aside in a contingency fund.
Council Leader Chris Holley said that the fund had proved invaluable in helping to balance the books.
He said: "We had an inkling that Tir John may be closed in the new year and were given a formal letter from the Environment Agency in February.
"The site closed at the end of May and that was all well after budget plans had been finalised.
"We put a contingency fund in place and that is what is being used to pay for these things.
"There are ongoing exercises to look at savings.
"We have got to pay this extra money, so we have got to try and find savings.
"It is now a budget process and we're looking at ways of saving money.
"The need to save money in the day-to-day running of Swansea has been flagged up by the council's chief financial officer in a warning of major financial risks.
Councillor Holley said that the process would not affect large-scale projects, such as the proposed £20 million redevelopment of Bishop Gore School or the £25 million to reopen the leisure centre.
He said: "It gives the impression that capital projects have got problems. That is not the case.
"What I wanted to point out is that concerns are with the revenue budget.
"The warning given by the financial officer to the corporate management team was not about capital projects.
"The budget concerns we are facing are with revenue and that is what we are addressing.
"One way the council is hoping to slash expenditure is by increasing recycling.Councillor Holley said: "We will pay out around £7 million on dealing with waste this year.
"The public need to be aware that about £2 million of that goes in landfill taxes to the Government.
"These are stealth taxes on waste. We need to find ways to reduce that. Recycling is one way."
