Morecambe Town Council agrees budget and 2.46 per cent rise in Council tax share

Morecambe Town Council has voted through its budget including a 2.46 per cent rise in its share of Council tax.

The decision was made at a meeting held at Morecambe Town Hall on Thursday evening.

The town council budget for 2026/7, projects that expenditure for the year will be £1,362,520.

The total Council tax precept required is £1,048,785.69 and would mean the majority of Morecambe householders paying 3-4p more per week.

Speaking at the meeting, Councillor Jason Slater, a Morecambe Bay Independent (MBI) (below), hailed the budget as "financially prudent" and said "we are producing a service of value".

His MBI colleague Councillor Geoff Knight said: "People say Morecambe Town Council is being over ambitious.

"We HAVE to be ambitious. Lancaster City Council won't exist in a few years (due to Local Government Reorganisation plans).

"We should do whatever we can to make Morecambe a better place and do it cost effectively."

Lib Dem Councillor John Bates (below) hailed the 2026/7 budget as "a real terms cut, taking inflation into account".

Councillor Clark Kent, the MBI chair of the council, said spending money on new planters would "improve the look of Morecambe" and said having a Christmas tree in Bare last year, and lights in the West End, were examples of positive work by the town council.

"It is a very, very small contribution and that money is being used in the right places to add value to the community," he said.

But Councillor Martin Bottoms, also an MBI, said he would not support the budget.

"I've looked at the figures and there is no reason why there needs to be any (Council tax) increase at all," he said.

"Yes we will have to take on a lot of extra responsibilities after LGR.

"But the difference to 2022/23 is colossal."

Councillor Hart replied: "So is the work the council does and the number of employees we've got."

In 2022/23, Morecambe Town Council expenditure was £537,387 and they raised £425,250.45 from Council tax.

Councillor Bottoms had earlier called for money to be redirected from the town council's festivals staffing budget to help fund projects in the West End of Morecambe. This will be discussed at a future meeting. 

Then, Councillors Clark Kent, Jackie Rogerson, Faye Cooper, Dan Blacow, Jason Slater, Geoff Knight, Debbie Knight and Wayne Dixon (all MBIs), John Goodrich and David Whitaker (Labour), Russell Walsh (Reform UK), Paul Hart, John Livermore, John Bates and Jim Pilling (Lib Dems) voted in favour of the budget.

Councillors Martin Bottoms, John Hanson of Labour and Tricia Clarke, an independent, voted against. Councillor Roger Dennison abstained. This meant the budget was passed via a majority. 

Morecambe Town Council's proportion of Council tax makes up just four per cent of an overall bill.

The council said plans for spending its money in 2026/7 include expanding its 'Bloom Together' planting scheme and buying new pavement planters to "provide year-round seasonal colour throughout the town".

They also plan to purchase "event infrastructure to support the safe delivery of Morecambe’s varied festivals and outdoor public events by meeting the requirements of the new Martyn’s Law legislation".

Martyn's Law, named after Martyn Huett who was killed in the 2017 Manchester Arena bombing, requires public venues, events, and organisations across the UK to adopt security measures to mitigate terrorism risks. 

The proposed budget also includes £65,000 to be awarded in grants to Morecambe events and festival organisers, £65,000 for the council to run its own events or for event partnerships, and a public realm budget of £555,520.

Lancashire residents pay the vast majority of their Council tax bill to Lancashire County Council, which is proposing a 3.8 per cent rise in its share.

Residents of the Lancaster and Morecambe District pay the rest of their Council tax bill to Lancaster City Council, which is raising its share by 2.99 per cent, the police and fire authorities, and their local parish council depending on where they live (ie Morecambe Town Council).

Read more on the 2026/27 Morecambe Town Council budget HERE.

Also at Thursday's meeting, town councillors said they would love to see a museum in the town, during a presentation on plans to redevelop Lancaster City Museum.

A £6m project is being mooted to overhaul the City Museum in time for the 250th anniversary of the building in 2033.

Carolyn Dalton, museum development manager, gave the presentation where she said the City Museum (below) was "very Lancaster focussed" and "we are conscious there is no museum in Morecambe".

She said the museum service was "trying to actively collect (items) from around the District" including from Morecambe. 

The idea behind the presentation was to discuss Morecambe's key heritage stories and how Lancaster City Council's museums can represent and support that heritage.

During the talks at Morecambe Town Hall, councillors gave many examples of Morecambe's storied history, such as the Illuminations, the fishing heritage of the Bay, theatre and comedy shows, the Miss Great Britain beauty contests held in the town, the Art Deco heritage of the Midland and Bruccianis ice cream shop, Torrisholme Barrow, and even how Morecambe Bay was once mentioned in a James Bond film (On Her Majesty's Secret Service in 1969).

Councillor David Whitaker of Labour (below) said: "We need to look at our assets in Morecambe.

"After (the planned Local Government Reorganisation) we might have an opportunity to use part of (the town hall) as a museum.

"We have a great history of theatre, comedy. So many things have happened in Morecambe in the past. Big names appeared at the Winter Gardens."

Ms Dalton said: "We are ready to support any initiative like that."

Councillor Faye Cooper said: "I'm excited to see Lancaster Museum take Morecambe's history more seriously."

Councillor Russell Walsh said: "(For) having our own museum, how much stuff have we got?"

Ms Dalton said: "It's not huge but it's reasonable. We have lots of photos that would make a fantastic online archive. But it's patchy.

"We've always felt it would be good to have Morecambe's heritage in Morecambe."

There was also talk of having the Sir William Priestley, the former Morecambe lifeboat which is housed at Lancaster Maritime Museum, returned to the town.

"We would love you to have it back," said Ms Dalton.

"We would do our best to support any project you come up with."

Also at Thursday's meeting, the town council voted in favour of lodging objections to three planning applications in Morecambe.

They were retrospective plans for a car park and bowling green at the former Cumberland View pub on Heysham Road to be used for a car dealership, plans for an illuminated digital advertisement sign at 187 Euston Grove, and change of use of a hotel at 8 Thornton Road to a nine bedroom HMO (house of multiple occupation).

Read more: Car dealership reveals plans for site of former Heysham pub - Beyond Radio