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Council pursues minister for fair share
The Leader of the Council, Stephen Carr, and Executive Councillor for Resources, Neil Reddin, have met with Phil Woolas, Minister for Local Government and Community Cohesion as part of the Council’s continuing campaign for a better deal for the people of Bromley.
This is the fourth year running that the Council has not received enough money from government to even cover the cost of inflation let alone the increased demand for many Council services. The Council is also denied access to other sources of government funding simply because the seemingly affluent view of the Borough as a whole masks pockets of real disadvantage. Boroughs that share common borders with Bromley received considerable additional funding for dealing with the same problems that also exist in Bromley.
The Minister acknowledged that nobody at ministerial level has an overview of the entire government funding going to each Council and that the information being requested by Bromley on each Council’s share would be useful.
Finally, they discussed the problem of political accountability for local taxation decisions. Given the importance of government funding on a Council’s ability to deliver services and the resulting Council Tax, local residents must be confused as to who is really determining what they receive and how much they pay.
Said Council Leader, Stephen Carr: “Of course money must be directed to areas of greatest need, but a system of funding that does not recognise the problems of less affluent parts of the borough where many of our services are vital to the well-being of the community cannot be right. We are also concerned about the ability of local councillors to determine service and tax levels for our residents. When you view these issues against the growing powers proposed for the Mayor of London, we are really concerned at the erosion of local influence over what Bromley will look like in the future”.
ENDS