Squeaky budget bum time for Glasgow

Hello readers, it’s Monday again, how did that happen? We’re plugging away here at Bell HQ, and buoyed to notice that we sailed past 8,000 members at some point over the weekend. We’re also well on our way to reach 500 paid subscribers by the time the daffodils bloom this spring. If you’d like to sign up, we’d be delighted. You can do so below. 

We’re also hiring a full time reporter. If you’ve got a nose for news stories, dogged determination and a flair for unspooling a good yarn, then you can read more and apply here (applications in before 21 February, please and thank you.)

Now, it's time to balance the books.

Big story: It's budget crunch time for Glasgow City Council

Topline: It’s squeaky bum time for Glasgow City Council this week. On Thursday, the council will meet to set the finances in order for 2025/26. They’ve got their work cut out, and are busy sharpening the axes as we speak. 

Unbalanced books: By last November, GCC was already £25m over budget for 2024/2025. By Friday, it emerged the total overspend had risen a further £13m to reach £38m. Higher energy bills, costs of agency staff (for the likes of refuse collection and disposal), and increased rent all contributed to the financial overspend. GCC deputy leader and treasurer Ricky Bell called it a “perfect storm”. Who could disagree?

Rebalancing the finances: The money to cover the £38m overspend is set to come from a budget support fund — a reserve set up in 2022 (not originally intended to cover running costs) that Cllr Bell said had been created “in order to allow us to look at how we can do things differently”. The alternative, he explained, would be for “very, very large increases in council tax, which I don’t think the residents of Glasgow would thank us for”. He might be on to something.

Elephant in the room: There is cross-party agreement that the current system of council tax is regressive and outdated — as outlined by Greens MSP Ross Greer in an episode of Scotcast last week — yet it’s not going anywhere anytime soon. Not only does the tax hit lower income households the hardest, the bands are based on 1991 evaluations, meaning over half of Scottish homes are in the wrong council tax band. In Glasgow, the city feels the pinch sharply owing to its depleted population and thus council tax base, as well as the fact many residents are either exempt or in lower band brackets to start with. 

Feeling the freeze: Council tax freezes and rate caps have been in place for much of the past two decades, but finally look set to increase as local authorities across Scotland try to balance the books. Some council areas, such as the Scottish Borders, are set to increase council tax by 10% from April. Glasgow is said to be considering an above inflation 5% increase for 2025/2026, but so far officials have been tight lipped. A council spokeswoman told the Daily Record: “A range of options are being considered by Councillors and therefore it is too early to say what the agreed position on council tax will be.” Either way, council tax rises in Glasgow, even if they were to be as high as 10% (which it doesn't sound like they will be) are unlikely to do enough to redress the budgetary deficit in the long term. 

Salami Slicing: Back in November, Cllr Bell told the city administration committee: “We cannot continually be in a position where we just salami slice our services. That is not what we came here to do.” Up until last week, the council had been looking to swing the axe in the direction of 450 teaching posts over a three year period. Around 120 roles have already been scrapped, but the proposed strikes due to take place this week were called off after the EIS teaching union reached a deal with the council to withdraw the rest of the planned cuts. Last week in The Herald, James McEnaney revealed £8m in proposed cuts elsewhere in the education and early years budget. These include a review of the ‘free at 3’ nursery entitlements and cuts to additional support needs provision. 

Tax to spend? GCC is also using new powers to charge double council tax on second homes from April. The city is also pondering a 5% tourist tax, following in Edinburgh’s footsteps. This would bring £12.5m into Glasgow’s coffers annually, £11m of which would go towards events and improvements to the “look and feel of the city”. Cllr Bell has said he plans to introduce the tax “as fast as we possibly can without tripping ourselves up”. Fast as that may be, it remains some way off; Edinburgh’s levy won’t take effect until July 2026, let alone the proposed one in Glasgow. 

Bottom line: So far, it’s unclear how the council is planning to address the long term shortfall in funding. While dipping into budgetary reserves offers short term relief, the approach to balancing the books is still largely of the salami slicing variety. Greens Cllr Jon Molyneux wants assurance that there will be “more financial rigour and financial management” to ensure that “we’re not going to end up back in the same position in two or three years”. At the moment, Molyneux’s prediction feels far too accurate. The rest remains to be seen this Thursday.

And some stories you might have missed:

Ex-Conservative party branch treasurer involved in £1m money laundering scheme
The startling story of how Malcolm Macaskill overstated the sales from his sandwich businesses to reclaim more than £800,000 from HMRC between 2003–2014 — spending the money on regular holidays, a Harley Davidson and trips to London to splurge at Harrods. The ex-Conservative branch treasurer also laundered £200,000 through his local Conservative parties in Glasgow and Rutherglen.

Divers discover treasure trove of old Glasgow pottery
A group of divers off the coast of Arran found a remarkable cargo of old Glasgow pottery, first produced in Glasgow in the early 1840s, and sunk with the SS Eagle in 1859. From 53 metres below, the trove of Bell's Pottery was painstakingly carried back to the surface by diver Graeme Bruce and his team. 

Read, listen, watch

Straight outta Calton 

Followers of Scottish rap and mákina MCing might be familiar with Calton-born Oakland Badza, better known by his stage name, Oakzy B. He’s outdone himself with the release of ‘Scheme Politiks’, a short film, produced and directed by Sami Omar and Up2stndrd. The film follows a young man, JoJo, played by Badza, as he navigates harsh realities in the East End of Glasgow, finding solace through music. It’s a who’s who of Glasgow rap, featuring guest appearances from Hawaii Fivo, Sherlock, MC Tiny, McRoy and Ziggy. Get at it.

We also rec: 

Jailed, Failed, Forgotten — Dani Garavelli on suicides in state custody
Garavelli retraces the steps of Katie Allan and William Brown, who took their own lives in separate incidents while in Pomont Young Offenders Institute in 2018. It’s a heartbreaking story, all the more so given a long awaited FAI found not only a “catalogue of failures”, but that the deaths “could have been avoided” entirely. This LRB piece tells their stories with emotional depth and forensic detail — laying out the suicide crisis in Scottish prisons (100 prisoners have taken their own lives since 2011, ten of which have been at Polmont YOI).

Did you catch… last week’s read? 

Glasgow has the finest collection of Victorian architecture in the UK. But much of it is crumbling in private hands. So, asked journalist Margaret Taylor, why can’t the city just buy its heritage back? 

Margaret’s analysis got a lot of love from readers. “Excellent piece setting out some of the basics of a crucial issue for the city,” one subscriber told us, while another described it as a “Great article explaining the trouble with the crumbling city centre, but also showing the amazing possibilities and how to get there!”. 

Our favourite comment came from Pamela Yule, who shared some useful intel. Glasgow councillors often cite the spectre of a 20% VAT levy added to restoration costs, which is apparently spooking developers into destroying old buildings, rather than regenerating them. Pamela told us: “from recent experience challenging a demolition/new build proposal it seems that the 20% VAT figure isn't correct [...] the true figure is more like 5%. Developers use the figure of 20% on top as they prefer demolition and build[ing] new.”

“Still,” she added, “VAT on renovation is very bad and should be stopped”.

Read Margaret’s breakdown of how Glasgow might reclaim its built heritage now.

Just a perfect day

Every week, one Glasgow resident runs us through their ideal way to spend a day in the city.

Marvin, 29, wine specialist and DJ 

DAWN: I have two perfect days. One of them is doing an eight hour DJ set. The other starts with coffee. I can’t function without coffee. I like to go to coffee shops and talk to the staff — the best place for that in the Southside is Frankie’s. I’ll grab a cappuccino, chat, then kick around the charity shops in Shawlands, making my way down to Otherside. It’s a little shop that sells knick knacks, vintage gear and tons of books. But I’m there for the records; they’re all second hand and donated by DJs in Glasgow. I’ve got some amazing Bollywood and Miami Soul records from there. 

Then I’d walk a few doors down to Some Great Reward, which also sells records but they’re all new. I’m trying to play more vinyl this year. 

MIDDAY: For lunch, I’m going back up the road to Sunny Acre where I always get the rye bread with mackerel, washed down with a wee ginger shot. 

AFTERNOON: I’d go to the park. There’s Queen’s Park but you will get stopped every two minutes and end up talking to everyone. Otherwise, a really nice walk is in Maxwell Park; quiet, nice scenery and a pond in the middle where you can sit and drink a coffee. This is when my partner would probably start talking about getting something to eat so we’d go to this lovely wine bar called Made from Grapes, have some wine and cheese. Then I’d head back to Radio Buena Vida on Victoria Road, see [RBV co-founders] Speedy and Suz who always steer me right when I’m balancing too many plates.

DUSK: Dinner would be Errol’s, if I want pizza — they do the best in Glasgow. If I want something a bit more substantial but cosy, I’d go to Big Counter. They have this colossal parmesan salad. 

AFTER HOURS: I’d go into town, first to a lovely negroni bar called Malo; I don’t think many people know about it. Then I’d make my way up to Chinaskis and end up in one of my favourite clubs, Berkeley Suite. Everyone there is like family. I might be playing, but if not, I want a proper dance. I love an artist called Mafalda, who just bangs out the funkiest tunes. I’ll be out till god knows when but on my way home, if it’s still open, I’d get a shawarma mix from Lazord, then walk over the bridge to my bed. 

If you’d like to feature in our Perfect Day slot, or nominate someone, drop us a line at editor@glasgowbell.co.uk.

Unconstructive critique: Basement Jazz Café, 263 Renfrew Street

Thursday to Sunday, as the darkness draws in and the revelry begins, Basement Jazz Café takes over Singl-End — transforming the popular Italianate eatery into a moody late night live music bar. The aficionados among you will still be mourning the loss of the Blue Arrow, the jazz-focused venue which closed its doors in 2022. It’s in its wake that Basement Jazz Café has been born, plugging a gap in the city centre scene. Few venues in Glasgow manage the transition from day to night quite as well as this, yet the task of a single venue straddling both popular café and over-subscribed music spot present a few challenges. Booking a table a week in advance is advisable, unless you want to stand; given many do, this creates a bottleneck between the bar and the crowded tables. A large number of the available seats are sadly facing away from the musicians, which on Saturday was a supremely talented quartet fronted by double bassist Ali Watson. Chatting to the musicians during a break, one thing was clear: having a venue like this is a “game changer” for the city. It might not be the Blue Arrow, but it is bloody great. 

If you agree/disagree or know another good jazz spot in the city, let us know in the comments.

Glasgow calendar: 

In squeezed economic times, give new life to your old clothes with this free upcycling club at the West End’s famed Doublet bar. No need for sewing experience — go along to attain some. 19 February, from 6pm. 

Other dates for your diary:

• Battlefield’s DIY outdoor ‘window wanderland’ gallery is back
  Until 18 February, 6-9pm. Free entry.
• Try this artisan craft market for your Sunday shopping
  23 February, The Briggait, 10am-4pm. Entry, £3.