The LGiU has issued
a statement
on reports that Secretary of State, , has told a group of council
leaders that local government would have to “share the burden” of
coronavirus-related costs.
Jonathan
Carr-West, Chief Executive, LGiU, said:
"There are
worrying reports that has told a group of
council leaders that local government would have to “share
the burden” of coronavirus-related costs.
We can only hope that this was a slip of the ministerial
tongue. On March 16th the Secretary of State had told
council leaders, “This Government stands with local
councils at this difficult time. Everyone needs to play
their part to help the most vulnerable in society and
support their local economy, and the Government will do
whatever is necessary to support these efforts.”
Of course, councils are used to being let down by
government and paying the price for their own efficiency
with further cuts. But we should be very clear. Councils
are already caught in a perfect storm. They have to
manage both the costs of coping with Covid-19 and
supporting vulnerable people in the community and the
increased cost and difficulty of providing ‘normal’
services in the midst of this – services including social
care which protects capacity in the NHS.
They will have ongoing costs supporting a transition to
‘normal’ life. At the same time, they face a loss of income
from charges and council tax.
And, on top of all of this, there are underlying financial
pressures which have already taken councils to the brink of
financial failure; including the rising costs of care and
children’s services. All of these get worse by the month
and we are further than ever from a plan for sustainable
local government finance with councils now propped up by
short term annual financial settlements.
So, if the Government does renege on its promise to support
councils, they will fail in large numbers. That will plunge
millions of people around the country into further crisis
and impede our national recovery from Covid-19. It’s at the
local level and through local government’s capacity to
rebuild local economies and mobilise that national renewal
will be driven most powerfully.
Ministers have become accustomed to thinking of local
government as a bottomless pit into which they can shovel
financial and political risk. That’s just not tenable any
more."
