Council ‘has cash to keep’ #StDavidsHall and #CardiffStory reports @ShiptonMartin
FEARS AMG TAKEOVER WOULD DAMAGE ACOUSTICS AT FAMOUS VENUE
South Wales Echo, 11 Feb 2023 by MARTIN SHIPTON Political editor-at-large newsdesk@walesonline.co.uk
CAMPAIGNERS who want to save Wales’ national concert hall from privatisation say Cardiff council should take advantage of its better-thanexpected funding settlement to keep it as a public asset.
The council is facing opposition from a number of groups since announcing plans for St David’s Hall to be run by Academy Music Group (AMG).
At present the hall requires a subsidy of £1m per year from the authority to keep going.
But there are fears that the concert hall’s reputation as a world-class classical music venue will be compromised if AMG takes it over and removes seating to increase audience capacity, thus damaging the acoustics.
Additionally, there are concerns about plans by the council to shut the Cardiff Story Museum and make cuts to the library service.
Cardiff Civic Society, the capital’s leading conservation body, is arguing that such cuts should not go ahead, because the authority’s financial outlook is not as grim as it was when the original decisions were taken.
Lyn Eynon, who leads on planning matters for the Civic Society, referred to a council report on the authority’s budget which stated: “The difference between resources available and resources required is £23.497m.”
Before its increased settlement from the Welsh Government, the funding gap was £53m.
Mr Eynon said: “In light of a smaller deficit facing the council, it could review these decisions.
“The shortfall reduces further to £10m with assumed £5m revenue from a 3% council tax increase and £8.5m ‘efficiency savings.’
“Appendix 9 to the 2022-23 budget report showed that Cardiff had £79m of general reserves, yet it proposes taking only £1.5m from reserves next year.
“Why does the council not review the £66m of earmarked reserves to confirm if they are still needed for their intended purpose?”
Mr Eynon questioned whether the cost of the new arena planned for the city had increased from the “affordability envelope” of £246m previously announced.
He added: “Cardiff currently charges only 50% council premium on some empty homes and nothing on second homes; it proposes going to 100% on those empty homes from 2023-24 and on second homes from 2024-25 (as it has to give a year’s notice).
“The council estimates £300,000 as extra revenue for the next financial year; if it went to the permitted 300% on all empty homes, it could raise an extra £2.5m next year; with 300% on second homes as well, that would give extra revenue of over £9m from the following year and hence more confidence to use reserves this year.
“The council admits its estimates are ‘prudent’ so the true revenue is likely to be higher than this. Why does the council not go to 300%?
“We acknowledge the impact of austerity and the decisions of the UK Government, which means there are constraints on public expenditure.
“Cardiff council does have a shortfall this year, but it is not actually quite as bad as feared. However, we do not agree with the choices it has made, nor are we happy with the conduct of the consultation on the future of libraries, St David’s Hall and the museum.
“Each should have had a dedicated three-month consultation with council-organised public meetings to discuss the alternatives. Instead the consultation was announced in late December and squashed into the wider consultation on the budget.”
A Cardiff council spokesman pointed to the authority’s published guide to the 2023-24 budget which makes it clear the council is obliged not to allow spending to exceed revenue, and that reserves should not plug funding gaps.
The Cardiff Story Museum and St David’s Hall are non-statutory services with ongoing revenue costs as well as capital cost requirements. According to the council, this is why they are part of the budget consultation.
A council Q&A on the plans for St David’s Hall states: “The council has been exploring alternatives for the running of St David’s Hall since 2014 and in 2016 it undertook a full dialogue public procurement process. This process was unsuccessful, with no organisations coming forward willing to take on responsibility for maintaining the building and associated costs. As the Hall requires an annual subsidy from the council which often reaches £1m a year, its future is reonsidered annually.
“The final decision on whether to approve the offer will return to the cabinet. This is expected to happen in March.”
The cost to the council of the planned arena has not increased since Live Nation was announced as the preferred developer. Extra costs will be borne by Live Nation, not the council.
It is understood that any extra council tax revenue from empty homes and second homes will be credited to the council’s housing budget.