The local authorities funding crisis is not a coincidence, we get what we pay for - Yorkshire Post Letters

The reason for the growing numbers of local authorities - of all political persuasions - finding themselves on the verge of bankruptcy cannot be the sudden and coincidental arrival of incompetent councillors across the entire nation; there must be a logical and credible explanation that fits all the cases.

In the immediate post-war years and the establishment of the 'Welfare State', we enjoyed successive governments that were so close to one another in their consensus that the term 'Butskellism' was coined to describe their very similar policies (Rab Butler and Hugh Gaitskell).

However, the 1980s saw a new international political movement emerge, known as neoliberalism, whose basic tenets included self-sufficiency, individualism, and the reduction (and ultimate elimination) of the 'nanny' state.

This concept has been continued and is alive and well in our current government. Today's policies are basically directed towards reducing the tax 'burden' on 'hard-pressed' working families and encouraging self-reliance and personal choice.

Of course local authorities have less cash to meet their obligations for the reason that they receive less from central government and their local precepts are under tight control.

The mathematics of the crisis is clear and simple. We get what we pay for. If we desire good, well-maintained schools and hospitals, and all the other services which tell us daily that they cannot manage their accounts, then we simply have to accept that we need to pay for them.

Our citizens are encouraged in the belief that the UK tax burden is crippling, but the simple fact (which can be verified on numerous academic websites) is that we are amongst the lowest personally taxed people in Europe, as well as boasting easily the most rapid European rate of millionnaire creation (according to Oxfam).

We need to sweep aside the political smoke-screens and base our judgements on what are really quite simple facts.