Around 1,000 workers face losing their jobs following bombshell news Birmingham City Council needs to hack £600 million from its budget over five years.

Following the shocking revelation, the council’s Labour leader, Sir Albert Bore warned: “This is the end of local government as we have known it.”

Council tax will be hiked and frontline services eroded as the local authority tries to meet the massive cutback.

The bleak announcement was made by Sir Albert as the authority started planning its budgets for the coming years.

He blamed the swingeing cuts on the coalition government handing out less in grants than anticipated and the soaring costs of providing services.

In the next financial year, 2013/14, the council will have to find around £160 million in savings. The same savings will have to be made year-on-year until 2016/17.

Sir Albert said: “We have got to the end of the road when it comes to salami-slicing. We will now have to either stop or de-commission services.

“I’m not looking forward to this, but it is what we have got to do.”

He stressed before any cuts to services are made, there will be a full consultation, starting next month.

This will include four public meetings, where Sir Albert, his deputy Coun Ian Ward, and his Cabinet will go out and face the public directly and answer questions.

Sir Albert, whose Labour administration took over the council in May, said this was the beginning of the end for local government: The only way to balance books is by only providing services for which the council has a statutory responsibility.

These include adult and children’s social services, schools, refuse collection and housing.

All other services, including leisure, sport, culture, libraries and youth provision, are likely to be out-sourced to either private companies or third sector groups.

The council has already axed thousands of jobs and in the next four years will make around 1,000 more staff redundant.

Sir Albert said this meant the council workforce – excluding schools – will drop from 19,000 three years ago to 14,000 by 2016.