SOUTH AYRSHIRE taxpayers could be facing a long-term funding gap of more than £170 million over the next 10 years, finance experts have warned.

A ‘best value’ audit of South Ayrshire Council by accountancy firm Deloitte reveals that while the authority is financially sustainable in the short term, “it continues to be faced with significant financial challenges over the medium and longer term.”

A report by Deloitte for a special meeting of the council’s audit and governance panel last week reported a projected funding gap of between £6m and £20m by 2023-24, and “a gap of between £108m and £172m over a 10-year period”.

The report added: “It is positive to see the work progressing with the Strategic Change Programme with governance arrangements in place and the planned approach agreed.

“However, there is still insufficient detail against each project to be able to demonstrate that the plans are sufficient to meet the significant challenges that the council is facing over the medium-to-longer term.

"It is critical that this work is progressed at pace and scale to ensure that both the plans are sufficient and that the planned benefits are realised.”