Council leaders have said they are ‘disappointed’ in the Government decision to freeze local authority public health funding for another year.
The Department for Health last night confirmed that ring-fenced council funding allocations would remain fixed at £2.79bn for 2015/16 – remaining at the same level as last year.
Public health minsiter, Jane Ellison, said: ‘We have made a huge investment in improving public health across the country in the last two years. With this major investment staying in place for the next year, we want to see local areas continue their excellent work to help people lead healthier lives.’
Councils were also told that they could be eligible for a share of £5m if they met one mandatory health target – related to improving drug and alcohol services – and one local target of their choice. The Health Premium Incentive Scheme (HPIS) will be piloted over the next two years.
Chief executive of Public Health England, Duncan Selbie, said: ‘Local authorities are best placed to achieve improvements in the public’s health. The announcement of the public health allocations will allow them to get on with planning the services their communities need most.’
However chair of the Local Government Association’s (LGA) community wellbeing board, Cllr Izzi Seccombe, said leaders were ‘disappointed with the department’s decision not to protect real terms funding for 2015/16 by making it inflation proof’.
‘We have consistently maintained that local government can only fulfil the new duties if it is sufficiently resourced to do so. It was good public health was transferred from central government and it has to be adequately funded,’ Cllr Seccombe added.
‘Local government has so far borne the brunt of cuts to public spending; any reduction in the public health budget could prove counterproductive.’
The LGA welcomed plans for the HPIS but questioned whether it was ‘the best use of scarce resources for public health’.
Responding to the funding announcement, Cllr Teresa O’Neill, London Councils’ executive member for health, said: ‘Public health funding and resources play a vital role in the delivery of a range of preventative measures that help reduce pressures on health and social care services and improve outcomes for all.
‘We will be looking closely at what the latest settlement means for London. In addition, we are keen to ensure that any future method of allocation appropriately reflects the public health needs of Londoners.’
