Dundee’s SNP administration will present a budget focusing on jobs, fairness and young people, according to the group’s finance spokesperson.
A £1.3 million investment fund, raised from the proposed 2.5% increase to council tax, has been outlined in the SNP’s budget plans – due to be set next Thursday.
A number of services will receive extra funding as a result, including the project to make Dundee the centrepiece of North Sea oil and gas decommissioning and a one-off fund to boost tourism.
Opposition Labour councillors will propose the creation of a fund to attract science and mathematics teachers to the city, raised through the council tax increase.
The administration plan to set aside £100,000 for the Dundeecom project – a joint partnership between the council and Forth Ports – to establish Dundee as the “go to” location for North Sea oil and gas decommissioning.
The recruitment of a high profile “industry leader” to champion the city as a decommissioning destination has been touted, among other ideas, as a tool for attracting decommissioning work to Dundee.
Councillor Sawers admitted a reduction in the workforce of the council’s city development department would be required, but promised compulsory redundancies would not be necessary.
A one-off payment of £250,000 will go towards the city’s young workforce fund, as part of efforts to provide more opportunities for young people. The current budget of the youth investment fund would be increased by £16,000 under the SNP’s proposals, giving the Youth Council control over a £25,000 budget.
A further £120,000 is to be set aside for “tourism growth”, in an attempt to “maximise the positive economic impacts” the opening of the V&A, the UNESCO City of Dundee agenda and the European Capital of Culture bid could have on the city.
Mr Sawers highlighted big-name acts – including Little Mix and UB40 – being booked to perform at the city’s Slessor Gardens was an example of the benefits of supporting Dundee’s tourism industry.
The city’s Labour opposition group announced they would be proposing a 3% increase to council tax, part of which would go toward attracting teachers to the city’s schools.
Councillor Kevin Keenan said: “Recent reports have shown the need to do more to support our young people with Dundee falling close to the bottom of the league tables.
“We therefore propose to lay aside £200,000 to attract teachers of subjects that are in short supply including science, technology and mathematics. These are subject teachers where there is currently a real difficulty in recruiting. This would create a fund to provide a financial incentive or a relocation package that would help overcome the recruitment barriers.”
