Birmingham City Council boss Deborah Cadman stands down after 拢300m cuts package and 21% tax hike
Ms Cadman says she is "incredibly disappointed" with the council's financial position after it was forced to effectively declare bankruptcy last year.
Wednesday 13 March 2024 17:15, UK
The chief executive of Birmingham City Council is standing down just weeks after it approved 拢300m in cuts and a 21% hike in tax over the next two years.
Deborah Cadman, who was appointed to the role in March 2021, said now was the "right time to hand over the baton".
Her resignation comes after the local authority effectively declared bankruptcy last year after being hit with an estimated £760m bill to settle equal pay claims.
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The council issued a section 114 notice last September, confirming that all new spending, with the exception of protecting vulnerable people and statutory services, must stop immediately.
Earlier this month, the council approved plans to implement cuts and increase tax in a move the Unite union described as "devastating for Birmingham Council's workers and the entire city".
Ms Cadman said in a statement that she was "proud" of the "outstanding success" of the Commonwealth Games - which were held in the city in 2022.
"It was always my intention to leave the council once the budget (2024/25) was agreed, and we had a clear route to recovery and improvement," she said.
"Having secured that approval and having led on the development of the council's new improvement and recovery plan, I feel that now is the right time to hand over the baton to a new chief executive."
Ms Cadman said she was "incredibly disappointed" with the council's financial position and the "challenges" it has faced over equal pay claims and the "failed implementation" of Oracle, its new IT system.
She added: "It has been the honour of my life to be the chief executive of the city in which I was born and raised. I wish my colleagues every success in transforming the council into one that this great city deserves."
Under the measures approved by the local authority, council tax will rise by 9.99% in the first year alongside a string of cuts to front-line services.
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Street lights will also be dimmed to save £900,000, rubbish collections will become fortnightly to save £4m a year and highway maintenance spending will be cut by £12m.
The five-hour council meeting was told the cuts were needed to secure £1.3bn in exceptional financial support (EFS) loans from the government.
Nottingham City Council has also approved cuts to both jobs and services amid a reported £50m budget gap.
Last year the local authority also declared itself effectively bankrupt after issuing a section 114 notice.