LORELY BURT MP CHALLENGES MINISTER ON FUNDING FOR SOLIHULL
February 1, 2007 1:03 PM
Solihull MP Lorely Burt has called for a review of local government funding in a debate in Parliament yesterday. Highlighting the deep sense of anger at the £7 million worth of cuts which Solihull is facing this year, she said
"With a rise in grant of just £1 million, Solihull is bracing itself for major cuts to services, major redundancies, and major losses to everyone of facilities and services. For every £1 per head rise in Solihull, Birmingham gets £17. I do not get it, and I am afraid that my constituents do not either."
Addressing the Minister for Local Government, Phil Woolas, the Solihull MP asked:
"Can the Minister explain how anyone can work out that a borough with four of the most deprived wards in England, a disproportionate share of elderly people needing care, children to educate, social services to provide, roads to maintain, bins to empty, and so on, can do that on 40 per cent of the grant of the borough next door and only 53 per cent of the national average?"
Lorely Burt further challenged the Minister to explain to Solihull constituents and to those who run the council just how they can maintain basic services and, since they clearly cannot, who should lose out-the elderly, the children with special needs or the environment?
Lorely Burt said "Could we have a review of proportionality in setting the formula? We are only asking for fairness and reasonableness. We paid the taxes in the first place; we would just like a little bit more of them back."
The full Hansard report of the debate can be found at http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmhansrd/cm070131/debtext/70131-0017.htm#07013188001178
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