Bury residents could face service cuts and higher council tax after the council said it wants to open talks with the government about emergency financial help.

A cabinet report forecasts a £9.6m budget gap for 2027/28, even after new savings proposals. Without those savings, the gap would be £20.3m. The council also expects a £5.7m overspend this year, and the BBC reported a possible gap of £35m over three years.

Councils must set a balanced budget each year. If they cannot, they must issue a Section 114 notice, which effectively declares them bankrupt.

The report asks for permission for the council's chief finance officer to begin discussions with government about Exceptional Financial Support (EFS). The council says this would not be a formal application, and a spokesperson said "no decision has been taken to use that support".

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, finance leaders said they did not believe borrowing was the answer, but did not rule out council tax rises above 4.99% if the government allowed them. Trafford, the other Greater Manchester council to receive EFS in recent years, has raised council tax by 7.49% in each of the past two years.

Proposals floated include charging for green waste collections, cuts to youth services and switching off some streetlights between midnight and 5am.

The council said it faces the same pressures as councils across the country, including rising demand for adult and children's social care. Public consultation on the budget proposals is due to begin on 19 October, with the final budget set in February 2027.

Sources: Bury Council; BBC News (Local Democracy Reporting Service); Bury Times. This article was produced with the help of AI tools and checked by an editor against the sources above.