The cut
“For local government, the deficit we have inherited means an unavoidably challenging settlement. There will be overall savings in funding to councils of 7.1% a year for four years.”
Chancellor George Osborne, Spending Review speech, 20 October 2010
The background
“Unavoidably challenging” was how the Chancellor put the 28 per cent cut to town hall budgets. Local council bosses chose their words rather less carefully. The leader of the Liberal Democrats in local government, Richard Kemp, asked if the Communities Secretary Eric Pickles was “up to the job or…whether he thought his job was currying favour within the Cabinet rather than defending the sector”.
The Local Government Association warned today of “real pain” for millions of people, with cuts to a raft of frontline services – everything from protecting children, to caring for the elderly, and even keeping the streets clean. So how are councils going to cope? We’ve been speaking to town hall bosses to find out.
The analysis
Social care – that’s helping the elderly and disabled with things like washing and dressing – is going to be badly affected. Although councils will get an extra £1bn in this area by the end of the spending review, with a further £1bn channelled via the NHS, that’s not going to go very far.
Derek Osbourne, council leader in Kingston upon Thames, warns that all but the most needy will be forced to dig into their own pockets or rely on the voluntary sector for their care. He told CutsCheck: “It will always be those people who have a fairly low need and who can always get those services provided from elsewhere – the voluntary sector – or the private sector – rather than ourselves – so we won’t be targeting savings or cuts on those with really severe need.”
Social care accounts for 37 per cent of Kingston’s spend – £45m a year. And the council has already warned residents it is likely to remove a cap on the amount people contribute themselves to their care. Local resident Jane Young has been told she won’t be getting the £85 a week she currently receives from the council for much longer. She has a severe arthritic condition which means she can’t walk or talk without oxygen, and needs morphine to ease her constant pain.
She uses the money she gets from the council for help round the house and an occasional driver, because she can’t drive herself far without oxygen. She told us: “If I was to use the savings I’ve got left to pay a driver – I wouldn’t be able to fund the equipment I need to live relatively pain free – and without a driver it’ll be a bit like being a hermit – I’ll be able to go about three or four miles and that’ll be it.”
Richard Kemp said meals on wheels charges would have to go up in many areas. But he suggested many councils would rather put up council tax than hit the elderly and vulnerable, reneging on a Tory manifesto commitment to freeze council tax. “If it’s a question of council tax increases or meals on wheels then within reason I think most of us would go for council tax increases – but that always has to be set though against the ability of people to pay council tax because everyone is suffering in their own personal budgets,” he said.
And when I asked him if he minded breaking a manifesto commitment, he added pointedly: “Well it wasn’t our manifesto commitment.”
Central government has promised that if town halls freeze council tax, they’ll get cash equivalent to a 2.5 per cent rise. That was dismissed as a “bribe” by one Lib Dem council leader we spoke to.
Mr Osbourne suggested town halls up and down the country would end up increasing council tax. “I think freezing council tax will be very hard for many local authorities. If you are a council that gets three quarters of your money given to you by the government at the moment, the impact of yesterday’s statement will be really substantial. And that must put in danger a pledge to go to zero per cent council tax for this year,” he said.
But if big hikes in council tax would be a last resort for many town halls, a much easier target is leisure services. The LGA said libraries would close, and leisure centres and parks would reduce their opening hours. Fortnightly bin collections will become more commonplace and potholes in roads will go unmended. Mr Kemp said councils would have the money to meet their legal obligations but no more.
Cathy Newman’s verdict
The local government secretary is in an uncompromising mood. Despite signing his department up to the biggest spending cut in Whitehall, he tweeted this morning the following challenge to council bosses: “With a council tax freeze, extra for schools & social care the govt has protected the front line – Councils can now to do the same.” But protecting the frontline is out of the question, as Margaret Eaton, the LGA chairman, made plain today. 28 per cent cuts are going to hurt – and they’re going to hurt the elderly and vulnerable most.
