Labour blasts 'unfair' budget cuts

Official research suggests there could be a postcode lottery when the axe falls, some authorities at risk of losing far more than others as 1.2bn is stripped from council budgets.

Labour Shadow Local Government Secretary John Denham warned that many deprived areas which were most in need of help stood to lose the most because of the way the cuts – part of a 6bn savings package across Whitehall – are being applied.

The cuts will not fall on the main block grant which each council receives from central Government, but will instead be clawed back from other individual grants awarded to local authorities on the basis of needs. The system means areas with higher levels of deprivation are often more dependent on the additional funding.

Mr Denham, who opposes any cuts this year, warned that grants to tackle youth crime, anti-social behaviour and terrorism were among those vulnerable, along with funding for one-to-one tuition, breakfast clubs, supporting people with special needs and community cohesion projects.

He said: "The coalition has decided on an approach to the cuts which we believe will inevitably mean the communities with the highest levels of deprivation and highest levels of need are the ones that are hit hardest.

"Despite all the rhetoric about 'we're all in this together', this is a very unfair package, aimed at hitting those people who can least afford to be hit by the cuts."

He added: "It's very difficult to see how even the best run local authority is likely to be able to do this without an impact on front line services."

The decision to cut the additional grants means some councils in Yorkshire and the Humber have more of their budget threatened than others nearby.

For example, 22 per cent of Hull's total funding is considered "at risk" along with 19.3 per cent in Doncaster, 19 per cent in North Yorkshire and 18.9 per cent in York. In contrast, just 0.8 per cent of Harrogate's total funding is in danger, and just 1.2 per cent in Scarborough.

In Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg's city of Sheffield 18.5 per cent of funding is vulnerable to the cuts, compared with just 1.7 per cent of spending at West Oxfordshire, which covers Prime Minister David Cameron's Witney constituency.

A spokesman for the Department for Communities and Local Government said: "The Government is still discussing the precise detail of the local government savings package and will ensure Parliament is informed through a statement as soon as this work and analysis is completed."

Local Government Secretary Eric Pickles has claimed the cuts are needed as a direct result of Labour's "burnt earth" spending spree in the dying days of the last government.

He has accused Labour of leaving the Liberal-Tory coalition no choice but to order immediate spending cuts, and insists savings can be made without affecting frontline services.