More than 40 MPs have written to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to ask for an “emergency injection of funding” for councils.
The 46 county MPs who signed the letter said they were “exceptionally concerned” about a “double whammy” of reductions to services and higher council tax rates in order for councils to deliver a balanced budget.
The letter was signed by 44 Conservative MPs, one Labour MP, and one Liberal Democrat MP representing county and rural areas. The group includes seven former cabinet members.
The emergency funding for councils is needed to prevent substantial cuts to local services or, in some cases, possible financial insolvency and the inability to deliver a balanced budget in 2024/25, according to the group of MPs.
The letter was co-ordinated by the County Councils Network (CCN) and the County All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) and comes as the government is currently consulting on its final Local Government Finance Settlement, to be published next month. This will confirm how much funding councils in England will receive in 2024/25.
In the letter, the MPs pointed out that November’s Autumn Statement provided no new funding for local authorities, while the announcement of the National Living Wage increase has left CCN member councils over £230m worse off next year.
This is on top of CCN highlighting that its members are set to overspend on their budgets this year by £650m, with these councils facing a total £4bn funding deficit over three years.
The letter reads: “There is still an opportunity to rectify the situation and ensure MPs are able to support the vote on the Local Government Settlement within the House of Commons in early February. We would therefore urge you to do all you can to use the final Local Government Finance Settlement to provide additional funding for local government to ensure that the councils in our areas can continue to provide the services that our residents depend upon on a regular basis.”
The letter also suggests that any additional funding be directed towards children’s services and home to school transport “as combined these are exerting unprecedented pressure on local government services”.
The letter to Sunak concludes: “As a fellow MP for a county area, we are sure that you will find the prospect of residents in county and rural areas being impacted in such a way at this time concerning. We hope that you will be able to work with the Treasury to ensure that these points are addressed as part of the LGFS process and ensure that vital services in county areas continue to receive an appropriate level of funding for the coming year.”
Following the letter being submitted, the CCN and the County APPG said they were having “constructive” discussions with Downing Street but are “urging the government to rectify the situation and announce additional funding as soon as possible”.
Ben Bradley, chair of the County All-Party Parliamentary Group, highlighted the “substantial” proposed service cuts and tightening of eligibility for care services being included in budgets currently being set at county and unitary councils, as well as council tax rises.
He said: “No council leader will take any pride in taking this action, but they simply have no choice after the Autumn Statement left them in a significantly worse position.
“The extent of the impact can be reduced if councils are given an emergency injection of funding, and 46 MPs have signed our letter calling on the government to intervene and protect local services. The fact that we have two former local government secretaries, seven former cabinet members, and support from all three main parties shows the strength of feeling on this issue, particularly amongst my Conservative colleagues.
“I’m in the privileged position of being both a council leader and MP and so I can see both sides. The Autumn Statement put more money in people’s pockets and I understand that the public finances are tight, but councils provide important local services that millions rely on each day.”
Barry Lewis, vice-chair of the County Councils Network, commented: “We county leaders pride ourselves on being financially prudent and not afraid to make the difficult decisions but this year we find ourselves under financial pressure like never before. We desperately need government support to stave off the extent to which we will have to make unpalatable reductions to services.
“It is encouraging that an unprecedented number of county MPs, including those from all parts of the country, share our same concerns over the funding shortfall we face. We have had constructive discussions with ministers, but we now hope the government listens to our joint campaign and provides emergency resource later month.”
The group of MPs to have signed the letter include former local government secretary of states Robert Jenrick and Greg Clark, as well as former cabinet members such as Priti Patel, Therese Coffey, Damien Green and Brandon Lewis. The group also includes former local government ministers Neil O’Brien, Heather Wheeler, Kit Malthouse, and Jake Berry.
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