Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council has hit back at accusations that it has not done enough to lobby the Government for more financial support.
The council, which is run by a Liberal Democrat-led coalition, is forecasting a £27m budget gap for 2026/27, driven largely by rising demand for children's and adults' social care.
A freedom of information (FOI) request by the Daily Echo appeared to show that council leader Millie Earl and deputy council leader and cabinet member for finance Mike Cox had not organised a single meeting with the Government to discuss the council’s financial issues despite claims to the contrary.
The local Conservative Group also submitted a motion of no confidence, stating: ‘We welcome councillors from across the chamber coming forward with fresh, credible ideas. Residents need a new leader who can bring spending under control and reduce the risk of a section 114 bankruptcy notice. More of the same simply won’t work.’
There has also been a slew of criticism in the media from local MPs across the political spectrum.
Responding to the criticism, the council says that the leader met face-to-face with ministers twice on 8 July of this year, adding that the focus of the meetings was not specifically about finance and so they did not feature in the FOI responses.
The council also shared links to 18 letters – dated between 12 July 2024 and 13 Oct 2026 – sent by the leadership dealing with the council’s financial issues.
‘Alongside our repeated calls for Government support in press releases and national and local media interviews, the letters and emails we are sharing today show a sustained effort on behalf of our residents to highlight the scale of the challenge facing the council finances to Conservative and Labour Government ministers,’ said Cllr Cox.
‘And despite reports in the media to the contrary, this has resulted in face-to-face meetings with ministers.’
‘An FOI response does not always tell the whole story and is only ever in answer to a specific set of questions,’ he added.
