County approves first balanced budget in years
Cork County Council has approved a record Budget for 2024 of €458 million, an increase of over €55 million on the previous budget.
Adopted at a meeting of Cork County Council on Monday, it is the first balanced budget the council has seen in several years, thanks in part to an additional €10 million in baseline Local Property Tax (LPT) funding from the Government.
The budget, which was received positively by elected members, ensures services across the county are maintained and even increased despite continuing high inflation (7.8% for 2022 and 5.1% to October year on year).
Key services such as housing and roads will see increases of €18.4m and €22.1m respectively while LPT and commercial rates will remain unchanged from 2023.
The Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Grant Incentive Scheme will also continue providing a 3.5% rebate up to a max of €7,000 for each ratepayer.
The 2024 Budget will also see the creation of a new Service Enhancement Fund, valued at €650,000 together with ongoing maintenance of the €3.3 million General Municipal Allocation, the Village Enhancement Fund, and the Town Development Fund.
The Department of the Environment, Climate and Communications has allocated €1.2 million to Cork County Council from the Climate Action Fund (CAF) to deliver the Community Climate Action Programme (CCAP) addressing both direct climate action, climate education, and capacity building.
As well as Budget 2024, Cork County Council also approved its €1.5 billion 3 year capital programme which encompasses current, proposed, and potential infrastructural projects to be undertaken between 2024 and 2026. The overall emphasis of this expenditure relates to housing provision, roads, environment, recreation and amenity, and flood programmes.
Welcoming Budget 2024, the Mayor of the County of Cork, Cllr Frank O’Flynn, said the right balance had been struck to provide for continued growth while protecting vital public services.
“This budget is about balance, and I believe that,” said Cllr Flynn. “Everything we do as a council is about achieving the very best value in expenditure while creating real differences for the people who live and work in county Cork. Our communities remain a priority as we continue to provide increasing support, evidenced in the new €650,000 Service Enhancement Fund,” he added.
Chief Executive of Cork County Council, Valerie O’Sullivan said: “Cork County Council runs an enormous business, €450 million revenue and €1.5 billion capital. When you stop to think about that and how it’s spent across a range and diversity of functions, staffing, services, we are one of the biggest businesses in the country at that rate. And if we were to pay, particularly the people on my left here, in accordance with the sort of resources that they’re expected to manage, they’d be on double or triple their salaries.”