The chief executive of Bradford Council has refused to rule out compulsory redundancies as he outlined how up to £150 million will have to be slashed from the local authority’s budget over the next four years.

In an unprecedented move, Tony Reeves was invited to address members at a full meeting of the Council at City Hall last night.

He told councillors that between 25 per cent and 40 per cent of the Council’s annual baseline budget of £400 million will have to be cut in the lifetime of the coalition Government.

Mr Reeves said: “Clearly we are facing huge change and way over anything we have faced before over an extended period of time.”

Public spending cuts are being enforced by the Government to reduce the country’s deficit.

Mr Reeves said greater clarity on the nature of the cuts would come with the outcome of the Government’s capital expenditure review in October.

He said: “We are using staffing levels of the Council progressively but I can’t say that doesn’t mean no compulsory redundancies in the time of this Council.”

He said that while there would be “severe austerity measures”, frontline services would be protected as much as possible. He said since December 350 vacant posts at the Council had not been advertised externally and agency staffing was being cut.

Council leader, Labour councillor Ian Greenwood, urged political parties to work together and not “wallow in self pity”. He said: “This is a time when this district needs proper representation. We have to believe in the future of this community. Clearly we have some very difficult times in the short to medium term but I believe if we have a long-term vision for this community and we work towards it, we can deliver it over time.”

Conservative councillor Adrian Naylor called on the chamber to act urgently and come up with a list of cuts without the need for a consultation process as suggested in a motion put forward by the Labour group.

He said: “This is the time elected officials need to stand up and be counted. This is no time for dithering. It’s time for decisive action.”

Coun Jeanette Sunderland, leader of the Liberal Democrat group, called for a new way of working. She said: “We want to get the ball rolling and we want decisions by the end of August.

“There are no quick fix solutions. We are going to have to debate just what local services we are going to provide.”

Labour’s motion to engage with the local community, service users, partners and elected members to identify protection of local services and the economy was carried.