Responding to the Spring Statement announced by the Chancellor,
Cllr Shaun Davies, Chair of the Local Government Association’s
Resources Board, said:
“This year will be the toughest for more than half a century,
particularly for those on lower incomes, so it is good that the
Chancellor is taking steps with financial measures which will
help mitigate against some of those pressures for struggling
households.
“As the impact of cost-of-living concerns grow, the mainstream
benefits system will need to provide the first line of support
for people so that councils and local partners can concentrate
their limited resources on helping those who need tailored and
additional help. We are pleased the Government is providing a
further £500 million for councils to continue to provide targeted
local welfare support to low-income households facing financial
hardship in their communities. Councils will need maximum
flexibility and quick details on allocations, so they can
ensure this funding reaches those in need and can be used to
prevent families from reaching crisis point in the first place.
“The increase in short-term government funding through the
Household Support Fund is a positive step but cannot on its own
address underlying cost-of-living pressures, or to help people to
make the most of their money and strengthen financial resilience.
With many households likely to be economically vulnerable for
some time to come, councils also want to work with government on
an effective long-term solution to preventing poverty and
disadvantage that moves away from providing crisis support
towards improving life chances.
“Local government itself continues to face significant financial
challenges. Inflationary pressures, our own wage bill and energy
price rises, as well as the ongoing cost of dealing with and
recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, look increasingly likely
to make 2022/23 significantly more challenging for councils than
initially estimated when the Government made its funding
decisions as part of the Spending Review. We remain clear that
this continued pressure cannot be met by council tax rises alone.
“It is crucial that local services have a long-term, sustainable
future with certainty for councils over their funding. Councils
still need urgent for clarity from the Government on which local
government funding reforms will happen and when, and what the
impact of any changes would be. The continued model of relying on
council tax raising powers to increase councils’ core spending
power is not sustainable or fair on local taxpayers or those who
reply on council services.”
