More than a dozen council leaders have warned they will have to draw on already depleted financial reserves this year to ‘stay financially afloat'.

Three in five (60%) of the 24 leaders of Key Cities members across England and Wales admitted they would be forced to fall back on reserves in a survey.

Some 40% will prioritise selling off council assets and reducing non-statutory services to address budgetary pressures while one in five (20%) identified redundancies and salary reductions as a priority.

Key Cities chair John Merry said: ‘Difficult decisions still need to be taken simply to deliver regular services.'