Agenda item

That the Council endorsed the Cabinet response as set out in Section 3 of the report, and also supported and endorsed as part of the Council’s representations the WLGA response to the consultation.

The Chief Executive introduced a report to advise on an outline response to the consultation on the Local Government Provisional Settlement 2015/16.  He reported that although the formal consultation period had closed  additional comments would be taken into consideration with the Authority’s response which had been endorsed by Cabinet on 18 November 2014.  The Chief Executive advised that the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) was also preparing a response on behalf of the local government family.  A copy of the response had been distributed to Members for consideration.    

Councillor Alison Halford referred to the WLGA response and raised a question on the settlement for coming years.  The Chief Executive responded that the Authority had no indication on the settlement for 2016/2017 onwards.  He explained that the local government had been seeking indicative statements on settlements to be made available by the Welsh Government (WG) for some time to enable local authorities to plan with a degree of certainty.  He commented that the Authority was placed in a difficult position as it was only able to plan one year ahead.  The Chief Executive commented on the impact of reductions in specific grants for core services which added to the primary impact of the major reduction in the Revenue Support Grant.    

Councillor Aaron Shottonreferred to the outline response to the consultation on the Local Government Provisional Settlement which was detailed in the report and commented on the shared concerns across all political groups on the settlement.  He expressed the need for unified support and proposed that the Council endorse the Cabinet response as set out in Section 3 of the report, and also support as part of the Council’s representations the WLGA response to the consultation.  The proposition was seconded.

Referring to the amount of the reduction in central funding from the WG, Councillor Shotton commented that the cuts were so significant it put the viability of a sustainable local government in question.   

Councillor Aaron Shottonasked Members to take note of discussions at  national level and referred to the call in England and Scotland for the devolution of business rates.  He commented on the significant amount of NNDR rates that the Authority had collected on behalf of the WG last year and said that a share of the NNDR funds should be retained by local authorities.   He also referred to the need for more local flexibility and freedoms in funding and specific grants and for a debate to be had at national level on what the priorities were going forward with reduced budgets. 

Councillor Derek Butler supported the views expressed by the Leader and commented on the issues concerning late notification of specific grants.  He reiterated the need for a share of the  business rates to be retained by local authorities in Wales.

Councillor Robin Guest suggested that the meeting be adjourned so that Members could be given the opportunity to consider the WLGA response. 

The Chair announced that there would be a 5 minute adjournment to allow Members to read the WLGA response.

Following the adjournment Councillor Guest said that the WLGA response had set out the main considerations on behalf of local government and had made the point that the approach to public sector funding did not apply equally across the sector.   He cited the increased funding for the Health Boards in Wales as an example and expressed concern that the savings achieved through cuts in local government funding were being used to fund the  health service.  

Councillor Mike Peers commented on the level of dissatisfaction amongst local authorities in Wales concerning WG financial planning.  He suggested that the WG be asked to review their own position to consider where efficiencies could be achieved.

Councillor Carol Ellis reiterated the concerns expressed by Councillor Guest around funding for the Health service and commented that increased funding had not resulted in improved services and cited increased waiting times and cancellation of operations as an example.  She emphasised that local government services prevented hospital admissions and kept people out of the NHS.  She expressed concerns that the cuts in funding would mean other services would be permanently lost and only limited social services and education could be provided in the future. 

Councillor Aaron Shotton commented on critical national persuasion and said that all parties needed to be united in recognising the importance of retaining local government and the sustainability of public services in Wales.   Members concurred with the views expressed by the Leader.  

RESOLVED:

That the Council endorsed the Cabinet response as set out in Section 3 of the report, and also supported and endorsed as part of the Council’s representations the WLGA response to the consultation.