SOUTHAMPTON councillors were today preparing to axe 120 jobs and make £8m of cutbacks to plug a budget black hole.

They claim to have found record efficiency savings to protect frontline services while delivering the authority’s lowest ever council tax rise – 2.5 per cent.

Councillors will clash over highways and leisure privatisation, plans to close Millbrook library, a proposed hike in cremation fees, and a freeze on members’ allowances.

If the £183m spending plans are approved today residents will be charged an extra £30 a year in council tax for an average Band D home, taking the bill to £1,239, excluding police and fire charges.

Finance chiefs have blamed the recession for a £2.2m drop in income and a rise in demand for services.

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The biggest cull, some 31 jobs, will be made through the closure of the Whitehaven and Birch Lawn care homes after residents lost a legal battle against their eviction.

The job cuts will hit typists, ratcatchers, community workers, cleaners, environmental health and tourism posts. But more in-house foster carers and social workers will be recruited and extra cash will be found into fix the city’s roads.

Conservative Cabinet member for finance Councillor Jeremy Moulton said: “Chronic Government underfunding and the backdrop of the recession have made setting a budget difficult this year. But we know times are tough for people in the city and that’s why we are keeping the council tax rise as low as possible, below inflation and lowest in the city’s history.

“Record efficiency savings are allowing us to keep taxes down whilst putting more money into supporting vulnerable children and adults, repairing the roads and investing in our schools.”

Under the budget, a controversial ten per cent council tax discount for pensioner households will continue for a second year.

The controversial giveway, worth nearly £1m, has been attacked by opposition councillors for unfairly benefiting richer pensioners.

Labour opposition councillors have accused the Conservatives of a “slash and burn approach”, while Lib Dems, who have proposed a lower council tax rise, said that residents will be paying more to be worse off.

Unions are objecting to plans to replace librarians and other museum and gallery staff with volunteers.

The proposed job losses come after 31 posts were axed in July.

Last year’s council budget saw 128 positions made redundant.

Key points

■ Funding to improve city’s roads and privatisation of the highways division.

■ The closure of Millbook library.

■ Use of volunteers to staff libraries, museums and galleries.

■ Hikes of up to 22 per cent to cremation and burial fees dubbed a “tax on the dead”.

■ Private management of council leisure facilities.

■ Councillors’ allowances and mileage rates.

■ £15m funding for the council’s Sea City museum.