GOVERNMENT claims that town halls should not raise council tax by more than three per cent owing to a boost in Whitehall funding have been attacked by an authority in Yorkshire as a "smoke and mirrors exercise to massage figures".
Local government Minister Barbara Follett said the four per cent rise in central funding meant increases in England should be the lowest for at least 16 years.
And, she pledged, the £76.3bn settlement, the final tranche of a three-year deal with a
uthorities, had been protected from recession-fuelled cuts.
Despite the claims Leeds City Council said its settlement would be just 1.8 per cent – the national average is 2.6 per cent – and joint leader Andrew Carter said any claims of a boost to the coffers were "a figment of imagination".
Even authorities which stand to benefit from the funding
have warned it will not compensate for expected cuts to future budgets as the public sector struggles to cope with the recession.
Coun Carter said: "It's very interesting that the Government is talking about us getting extra money given we getting far less than the national average.
"How that can be when you consider we are a major city, containing nine of the most deprived areas in the country, I just can't understand.
"Claiming we're getting four per cent more just doesn't tie in with the Treasury statistics – it is just more smoke and mirrors from the Government to massage figures for public consumption."
Ms Follett warned local authorities the Government remained prepared to impose a cap on any councils which attempted to impose "excessive" council tax rises and demanded further efficiency measures.
The Government said Yorkshire councils, police and fire authorities will between them receive an additional £88.7m in the funding settlement. The money represents a 2.9 per cent jump in funding. The average national increase is 2.6 per cent.
North Yorkshire County Council said their settlement could be more than five per cent owing to the social care pressures on the authority, but they expect major cuts sooner rather than later. Leader John Weighell said: "As we do not know who is going to be in power after the next election, any estimations on the level of cuts are pure speculation but we are certainly expecting them."
Mark Crane, leader of Selby Council, said they were also bracing themselves for tight budget restrictions in the future. "It is clear from the Labour and Conservative comments in the last few months that there will be cuts."
Most authorities in Yorkshire have not yet set their council tax rates but some have been able to give estimated figures for the next year. Sheffield City Council expects a 1.5 per cent increase in April 2010 – the lowest ever increase in the city – and Harrogate Borough Council a 2.5 per cent rise, the same as Hambleton and Richmondshire.
York council could not say what its rate would be but cited a series of issues with the Government as well as a below average increase in settlement as exacerbating the problems of the recession.
