HUGE cuts will see £2 million slashed from a district council’s budget, a leading councillor has warned.

Councillor Paul Middlebrough, the Conservative leader of Wychavon District Council, warned that colleagues and taxpayers would face a “huge change” over the next four years.

It comes after the Government announced a 25 per cent spending cut across all departments, except overseas development and NHS budgets.

That would include cuts to the Department for Communities and Local Government, which gives central funding to councils and which makes up the vast majority of their budgets.

For Wychavon, that would equate to an estimated £2 million over four years – about £500,000 each year – although the total figure could be even larger.

The figure will be roughly similar at Worcester City Council.

Councils must now wait until the results of the coalition’s comprehensive spending review, published on October 20, to discover exactly how deep the cuts will go.

Coun Middlebrough said: “We’re in a better position than most councils if not most of the public sector.

“We’re debt-free and have a good record of making efficiencies.

“Nevertheless, a 25 per cent reduction will have a very significant impact on the way we provide services.

“We won’t be able to provide services in the way we have traditionally.”

Coun Margaret Rowley said there would be “no credit” from Government for the council’s already robust record of efficiency savings.

Coun Middlebrough also revealed Chancellor George Osborne’s decision to bump up VAT to 20 per cent from January 2011 would cost the district council £50,000 in lost car parking revenue annually.

He warned that the cuts, which had already ended free swimming for residents by September, was the start of things to come.

He also said that there could be changes to the concessionary bus travel scheme, which will be moving to the control of Worcestershire County Council.

The scheme allows free off-peak bus travel for qualifying pensioners.

The district council is responsible for looking after parks and rubbish collections and administering housing benefit applications among other services.

However, Coun Middlebrough welcomed the Government’s view “that Whitehall does not know best” and welcomed the promise of powers coming back to councils.

Wychavon district councillors will hammer out a financial plan on November 30 once officers have digested the Government’s forthcoming cuts.