THE bleak picture facing St Helens Council over the next five years in the face of an anticipated £40m of cuts has been laid bare by its new chief executive.

In a presentation to members of the council's cabinet, Mike Palin, who took the helm in May, spelled out that local government will have to change.

The first task will see £23m being axed from the budget over the next two years before that number rises to £40m by 2020.

Mr Palin said that at the same time as making the cuts there is expected to be a rise in demand for services that protect the most vulnerable.

St Helens has been highlighted as the 11th most affected area by welfare change and has an ageing population.

He told councillors: "The election result means that the government will continue the course it's taken for a considerable amount of time.

“Austerity will carry on. And local government funding will not be protected.

"Local government will change and we can expect to take £40m off the budget by 2020 while at the same time demand for services will go up (in some areas), such as cared for children.”

He stressed that the council in 2020 will have to assess what services people will need and how they will engage with the community to assess the impact the cuts are having on them.

Question marks will also hang over how “discretionary services”, such as libraries, sports and ranger services, are delivered.

The council will also need to bolster its finances by generating revenue. Driving the growth of new homes and businesses is one way to achieve this.

St Helens Council already has £60m less in its annual budget than five years ago due to government austerity measures, cuts that have cost 1,700 jobs.

No reference was made in the presentation to further job losses, but Councillor Tony Johnson, who chaired the meeting in the absence of St Helens Council leader Barrie Grunewald, admitted to the Star that the scale of the cuts mean more reductions appear inevitable.

He told the meeting it was “a bleak picture”, while fellow councillor John Fulham said the situation was dire.

Combined saving targets from 2016 to 2018

Children, Families and Young People / Education and Lifelong Learning: £4.4m

Adult Social Care and Health: £8.5m

Employment, Planning and Growth: £1.6m

Transport, Housing and Community Safety: £1.8m

Green, Smart and Sustainable Borough: £3.3m

Strategy, Governance and External Affairs / Corporate Services: £2.5m

Public Health and Well?Being Total: £0.9m