The Liberal Democrat Group on Bedford Borough Council has not responded to questions about a wave of redundancies under its previous administration – even as it accuses the current Conservative leadership of mismanaging the council’s finances and slashing staffing budgets.
The row comes after the Lib Dems published a Facebook post warning of “cuts worth 10 per cent of staff budgets” being introduced to address a “£10 million overspend in the budget” just weeks into the new financial year.
They described the situation as “the biggest overspend in the history of Bedford Borough as a unitary council” and blamed a “fantasy” budget backed by Labour and Conservative councillors.
In the post, Lib Dem finance spokesperson councillor Michael Headley (Putnoe) said: “Even though we knew things were bad, this still comes as a shocking revelation.
“Budgets for key frontline services were just set far too low, and savings plans were clearly just wishful thinking.”
But questions remain over the Lib Dems’ own track record. In 2017/18, 85 council posts were made redundant under their leadership.
Despite repeated requests, the group has declined to answer how those cuts were justified at the time, what percentage reductions to staff budgets occurred, and how their own assumptions on long-term financial resilience compared to those now being criticised.
The group also did not respond when asked whether services were weakened by those cuts or if any of the current financial pressures stem from decisions made during their 14 years in power, from 2009 to 2023.
The Conservative portfolio holder for corporate services, councillor Marc Frost (Wixams and Wilstead), said the administration had inherited the financial position.
“The scale became clear shortly after taking office in 2023. What we inherited was a council with hollowed-out reserves, soft financial discipline in some service areas, and a backlog of politically convenient but economically damaging decisions,” he said.
Councillor Frost directly blamed the Lib Dems’ long-standing council tax strategy: “The previous administration’s obsession with short-term tax freezes has cost this borough dearly, nearly £24 million in lost income just this year.
“That compounded over time. We now face the consequences of a Band D rate that is significantly below our statistical neighbours, leaving us structurally underfunded.”
He also promised a more transparent approach to public finance.
“We owe it to residents to explain the situation in clear, honest terms, not jargon or spin,” he said.
“The next version of our public budget summary will be plain English, visual, and brutally honest.
“We want residents to trust that we’re dealing with this head-on.”
by John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
