15 October 2008
There is no need for local government to exaggerate the impact of today’s Provisional Local Government settlement, the figures speak for themselves.
The total amount of extra money made available to Wales’ 22 local authorities is around £10m which must meet the rising costs of key frontline services such as social services, waste management, education, libraries, leisure and transport.
Yesterday, Inflation was declared at 5.2%, yet not one council in Wales meets this inflation figure in its settlement. Next year, the Welsh Assembly Government will receive a 4.8% increase from Westminster yet what it is passing on to local government stands at only 2.8%. Councils are on the verge of signing annual energy contracts as a result of energy costs that have risen by 100% over the recent period. For example, Blaenau Gwent, one of the most deprived authorities in Wales has received a £1.5m cash uplift as a result of today’s budget settlement, yet the council’s energy bill for next year will rise by £1.7m alone.
All this begs the question where is the voice of local government in Cardiff Bay and how are authorities to cope with these pressures?
The Prime Minister said last week “that serious times demand serious people”. It is time now for Assembly Government ministers to properly explain to council tax payers the impact of this severe budget and stop pretending that all this can be solved by the “magic bullet” of collaboration and efficiencies.
Cllr John Davies (Pembrokeshire), WLGA Leader said
“I call on the Assembly Government to commence emergency discussions and work with local government to find both short term and longer term answers to the unanswered questions begged by this budget. The rhetoric of “tough but fair” cannot accurately describe this situation and as such we need to work together to steer a course through this crisis This will be the first of many difficult budget settlements for the Assembly Government over future years against the backdrop of a severe economic recession.”
“In this context I have been tasked by the WLGA to stress the interests of council tax payers and I call again for the return of the 1% efficiency levy worth £38m to be used to reduce council tax bills in these particularly difficult times for the tax payers of Wales. Council Leaders throughout Wales do not wish to place added worry and burden on people and therefore call upon Welsh Assembly Ministers to extend a hand of help by assisting councils to reduce the burden of Council Tax in this forthcoming year. We will do all in our power to keep council tax levels at or below inflation but it will be impossible to achieve
without the financial intervention of the Assembly Government. We are currently undertaking a survey with all local authorities to assess the impact of the budget on their front line services and will present these figures to the Assembly Government for consideration before the final budget is published later this year.”
Cllr Rodney Berman (Cardiff), WLGA Finance Spokesperson said
“This is a bitter blow for all councils, but particularly those in the south Wales valleys, North and Mid Wales. I pose the question again- why does local government continue to be treated in this way? We constantly speak of “One Wales” but there appears to be two public sectors. One sector is in the direct control of the Assembly Government that sees services such as the NHS properly funded year on year. The other is outside of Assembly Government control and despite meeting all its efficiency targets appears to be penalised. Sadly the same appears to apply to other services which are not directly controlled by the Assembly Government such as further education. I am particularly concerned about social care which is “invisible” within the One Wales document and within this budget despite the Rt Hon. Alan Johnson MP predicting a £6bn deficit in future years. This clearly shows that the Welsh Assembly Government is yet again ignoring key frontline services that should be the major focus for investment in these troubled times of repocessed homes and potential family breakdown.”
For more information contact: Natasha Weeks