{"id":23682,"date":"2019-08-23T16:29:18","date_gmt":"2019-08-23T15:29:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ihbconline.co.uk\/newsachive\/?p=23682"},"modified":"2019-08-23T16:29:18","modified_gmt":"2019-08-23T15:29:18","slug":"council-services-declining-due-to-5bn-funding-gap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsblogs.ihbc.org.uk\/?p=23682","title":{"rendered":"Council services \u2018declining\u2019 due to \u00a35bn funding gap"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"ElizabethParliament reports that MPs have accused the Government of being \u2018derelict in its duty\u2019 to local authorities by failing to set out a funding settlement that would ease the pressure on frontline services.<\/h3>\n

image:\u00a0Parliamentary copyright images are reproduced with the permission of Parliament<\/em><\/h6>\n

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Parliament UK writes:<\/p>\n

Funding for local government has been cut significantly since 2010. At the same time as cutting funding, the Government restricted local authorities\u2019 ability to raise council tax to fill the gap. In recent years spending reductions have been less severe but local government spending is still much lower in real-terms than it was in 2010. In response to this financial pressure, local government has had little choice but to cut back on the non-statutory services it provides. For example, net expenditure on planning & development and housing services has more than halved and net spending on highways & transport and cultural & leisure services is down more than 40%. Increasing demand for adult social care means that this trend is set to continue unless local government is provided with additional central government funding or the power to raise more revenues locally.<\/p>\n

Almost a decade of funding reductions has been accompanied by a move to business rate retention. This has made the local government finance system more complex, less transparent and has increased risks for some councils. Central government policy has also been inconsistent. NHS funding was protected but funding for adult social care was not. Councils were initially incentivised to freeze council tax but there is now an assumption that they will put it up above inflation. The lack of any council tax revaluation since the early 1990s also means that council tax is becoming disconnected from property values.<\/p>\n

Local government currently faces significant uncertainty. It needs to be able to plan for 2020\u201321 but there is a risk that the multi-year Spending Review may be delayed. A new funding formula and 75% business rate retention is also due in April 2020. There is also still no sign of the Green Paper on adult social care which was originally scheduled for 2017.<\/p>\n

Local government provides services for everyone but much of its resources are focused on some of the most vulnerable people in society. Children in care, adults with learning disabilities, the elderly in need of care and families at risk of homelessness are all reliant on services funded by local government.<\/p>\n

The current uncertainty for local government and the lack of funding for services must be addressed as a matter of urgency. Our main conclusions and recommendations are as follows:<\/p>\n

Reduction in non-statutory services<\/em><\/p>\n