The most senior Conservative in local government has warned that the finances of
some councils are close to breaking point as a result of the latest round of
government-imposed spending cuts.
Sir Merrick Cockell, chair of the Local
Government Association, predicts that some councils will go bust after it
emerged last month that the next round of budget cuts will amount to 15% for the
financial year 2015-16.
Previously, chancellor George Osborne had set out
a 10% cut in the comprehensive spending review last June — an increase in the
sought for spending reductions that Cockell told the Guardian was
unsustainable.
Cockell, who led the west London borough of Kensington and
Chelsea for 13 years, said: "We are being pushed into a position where either
things will fail or the system has to change … we can't cope unless someone
takes that big step … to change the way we operate."
His comments, before
Tory conference address from communities and local government secretary Eric
Pickles, bring to the surface simmering resentment among senior municipal Tories
at the scale of the reductions.
The minister has dismissed Labour
complaints as scaremongering but Cockell's comments suggest worries go
wider.
Cockell added: "The system will be fundamentally changed [with]
the fracturing of a lot of public services – especially if you [ministers] are
controlling the council tax."
Councils have to implement budget cuts of
33% during this parliament. But the LGA said councils would have to make
immediate cuts to soften the impact of the 15% reduction in
2015-16.
Guardian
