Local government will have £25bn funding gap, report warns
It would seem that notwithstanding a bevvy of election giveaways the fundamental malaise in terms of local government funding is set to remain. This story tells us:
Local government will face a £25bn funding gap in the coming years as reforms mean grants are being cut to “almost zero”, a new report has warned.
A few ring-fenced grants will account for less than a tenth of local authority expenditure by 2025, said the Trades Union Congress (TUC) and New Economics Foundation (NEF).
Councils will keep a higher proportion of business rates, but the report said there are major problems with the funding reforms, including greater exposure to the economic harm from a no-deal Brexit.
The report said around half of local-government funding came from central government in 2010, but by 2024-25 this will have been cut to zero, apart from a small amount of ring-fenced funding.
The funding gap will continue to increase, especially as demand for services will grow as people live longer