BREXIT
GB News
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Councils must have a ‘key role’ in Brexit negotiations Councils must have a leading role in negotiating the UK’s exit from the European Union, local government leaders said at the Local Government Association’s (LGA) Annual Conference. The LGA is also seeking assurances from the government that councils will still receive the £5.3 billion in EU regeneration funding they have been allocated up to 2020 following the referendum result. This is money which is earmarked to create jobs, build new infrastructure and boost growth across the country. EU laws impact on many of the council services that affect people’s day-to-day lives. These range from deciding how rubbish is recycled to improving air quality
and protecting people from being served unsafe food when they eat out. The LGA said councils must play a central role in deciding how to replace these EU laws. Power over the services which councils deliver cannot simply be transferred from Brussels to Westminster, the LGA says. Instead, taking decisions over how to run these local services closer to where people live is key to improving them and saving money. Council leaders want a seat around the table to ensure the Government’s EU exit negotiations are guided by this principle and to build on the progress of devolution across the country. Lord Porter, LGA chairman, said: “Now that the British people have voted to part company with the EU, it is vital that we avoid powers or
funding which affect local government getting swallowed up in Whitehall. Over the last year, more powers and funding have been given to local areas. The referendum result and the political uncertainty that has followed must not see that process stall or go backwards. Greg Clark has reassured that local government would have a ‘bigger role’ to play because of its ‘practicality and directness’ and powerful local leadership. He also said that local government would also have a part to play in bringing together divided communities after the division caused by Brexit. READ MORE:
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SHARED SERVICES
Shared services for West Sussex councils
FUNDING
Local government spending to decline Joint figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) have revealed that councils’ spending in England will fall by one per cent in 2016-17. The data has raised concerns over the financial resilience of councils, with cultural services set to see the biggest reduction with 5.8 per cent of cuts planned. The figures suggest that education budgets will reduce by 2.2 per cent, mainly due to the number of schools converting to academies, with fire and rescue services seeing a reduction of 1.3 per cent.
Rob Whiteman, CEO of CIPFA, commented: “Councils have taken a battering and the outlook only gets worse. These figures demonstrate the extent to which councils are suffering, without even taking into account the fiscal consequences of leaving the EU. Given that a Brexit may only compound the pressures, it is essential that local authorities undertake a thorough assessment of their financial resilience.” READ MORE:
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FINANCES
£1.9bn from reserves to fund services Official figures have shown that councils are planning to use £1.9 billion of cash reserves in order to fund services for the next financial year. The data found that councils have budgeted to spend nine per cent of their reserves between 2016-17. Adult social care services saw the biggest rise in expenditure, with local authorities set to invest an extra £308 million in services for the elderly and vulnerable. The statistics identified that councils are also due to increase spending on children’s and families’ social care services by £136 million, with an extra £175 million to
be spent on public health services. Communities Secretary Greg Clark said: “At a time when local authorities are playing their part in paying down the deficit, more than £300 million extra will be invested this year to deliver high-quality adult social care services. “Councils will have almost £200 billion to spend on services over the lifetime of this Parliament and I’m pleased the vast majority are also making use of new flexibilities to prioritise the services people READ MORE: really care about.” tinyurl.com/gw4l8q8
Arun, Chichester and Horsham District Councils are exploring plans to share services in a bid to save £2 million a year and improve services. The councils are believed to be considering sharing human resources, legal, and internal auditing services, with Chichester and Arun District Councils also looking into the possibility of sharing revenues and benefits, customer services, and information and communication technology. The cabinets of all three councils have been working together since March and are set to further consider the findings this month. Cllr Tony Dignum, leader of Chichester District Council said: “In the current economic climate we have to constantly look for new ways to make savings. This approach has been successfully adopted by many councils across the country and is tried and tested. “This project offers us an opportunity to explore how we can work more closely with our partners in order to continue to deliver quality services, while also delivering best value for our council taxpayers.” Ray Dawe, leader of Horsham District Council, added: “Many councils are already involved in sharing services in some form or other and it makes sense for us to further this process wherever we can. We have identified these particular services as areas where we believe we can maintain existing service levels, increase resilience and save money in these times of significant change in local government. At the same time we shall continue to look at other areas where we can achieve a similar result.” Leader of Arun District Council, Gillian Brown, concluded: “Many councils are involved in shared services in some form, and it makes sense for us to work together to improve services, increase resilience and save money in times of significant change for all public services.” READ MORE:
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Volume 23.4 | GOVERNMENT BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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