Almost 1,700 people and organisations respond to budget consultation

Midlothian Council Leader Councillor Kelly Parry has thanked local people for giving their views on savings proposals to help bridge a budget gap of £9.4 million in 2025/26 rising to £20.6 million by 2028/29. 

Very grateful

At the full Council meeting today (Tuesday), Cllr Parry said she was “very grateful” that 1,694 people and organisations had taken the time to fill in the survey. 

Will inform savings decisions

She said: “Thank you to everyone who has taken part in our budget consultation. We are still going through all the comments but what we’ve read so far has been very insightful as to the impact our savings decisions will have on local people and our communities. 

Local priorities

“Some very difficult decisions lie ahead and we are very grateful to have a clearer understanding of local priorities before setting a balanced budget in February 2025.”  

Online survey and paper copies

The public consultation ran from Wednesday 9 October to Wednesday 20 November. Local people could fill in the survey and read the supporting information online at Citizen Space. 

Could email comments

Paper copies were available in libraries and respondents could also email comments to the HaveYourSay@midlothian.gov.uk inbox. 

Gathered views on behalf of people who face discrimination

The Equalities team worked with Midlothian People Equality Group (MPEG) to gather views on behalf of people who face discrimination, including those with a disability. 

1,694 responses

There were 1,694 responses, 1,542 online, 105 comments and letters via HaveYourSay inbox and 47 paper submissions. 

Find out more

For a summary of the findings: 

• Infographic ‘snapshot’ of savings proposal findings by directorate 
• Summary of impact of savings proposals  

January meeting

Councillors will meet in January to give officers time to work through the details of December’s draft Scottish Budget, which made more than £15 billion available for local government. In the Autumn UK Budget, the government announced an extra £1.9 billion for Scotland in 2025/26.  

Extra funding

Cllr Parry said: “We are pleased that £289 million of the extra funding announced in the Scottish Government draft budget is non-committed meaning councils across Scotland will have flexibility as to how their share is spent. 

Clearer picture

“We’ll have a better idea in January what the extra money will mean in terms of bridging our budget gap of more than £9.4 million in 2025/26.

"What we need most now is for clarity from the UK Government on if it intends to fully reimburse local authorities for the additional employers’ national insurance contributions (eNIC). The additional contributions will cost Midlothian Council £5 million for its own staff and place a further unfunded inflationary pressure on those organisations we rely on to provide frontline services, potentially putting local services at risk."