Faced with a £4.2 million overspend Cambridgeshire Conservatives had no choice this year but to raise council tax by 2.99% the maximum the Government allows it to without a referendum.  Of course if it had done this in the past we would not now be facing the cliff edge which neighbouring Northamptonshire has already gone over.

Once the overspend is dealt with the 2.99% together with the 2% precept for adult social care gives us £3.6 million, but instead of using this money to support front line services such as road maintenance, adult services and children centres the Conservatives are passing it into what they call a “smoothing reserve” or in other words the banks and other financial institutions that look after the council’s funds.

Is this what council tax payers expect to happen to their money while they see their essential council services cut?