The Local Government Association (LGA) has set out a broad range of proposals for the Government to consider as part of the Spending Review, including setting planning fees by council.
The LGA says that locally-set planning fees would ‘ensure effective, responsive and fully funded council planning services, removing the burden from taxpayers who currently subsidise 30 per cent of total costs’.
The LGA writes:
All [are] aimed at streamlining public services, generating investment, and protecting social care and health – all while saving the public purse almost £2 billion a year by the end of the Parliament.
This report is the LGA’s offer to work with the government to deliver new, transformed and high-quality local services while at the same time reducing costs to the public sector. The LGA believes the Spending Review should:
- Enable wider integration of social care and health services to deliver savings and improve outcomes.
- Promote growth and productivity by accepting the case for further devolution of powers and funding.
- Help councils adequately resource and deliver high quality public services by transforming the business rate mechanism and providing a four year local government finance settlement.
