Cuts at Wellingborough Council will be "catastophic" say staff.

Staff at Wellingborough Council, represented by the trade union UNISON, have today issued a damning statement about the effect of cuts on "the community, employees, and the Councils future reputation". They say that the council is "close to the threshold of what (it) can achieve in terms of reorganisation, without the consequences being too severe to be acceptable... the proposed savings will have a catastrophic affect on Wellingborough Council as an organisation and indeed one that can attempt to provide services for the people of the Borough".

The statement continues "We are aware that...large scale job losses are proposed including the removal of whole services and further significant reductions in existing ones are also being proposed. We would urge the council to consider the implications of removing 25-30% of the workforce and corresponding services".

The staff also point out that the council may as a consequence break the law - as it may not be possible to even sustain services where there is a statutory obligation to provide them. They also point to fears of a workforce that is "demoralised and unable to cope".

Councillors are urged to consider other options to minimise job losses - including the introduction of car parking charges.

The full statement by Wellingborough UNISON is reproduced below.

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