The ‘principal cogs of local government finance’ are out of synch, a leading think tank has warned.
The warning comes as a collection of essays on the future of finances in the sector is published by Localis.
Commenting on Moving through the gears - Where will local government finance be in 2030? Localis chief executive Jonathan Werran says ‘property taxes, commercial revenue, fees and charges, capital expenditure and grant funding, are clearly out of synch’.
He quotes the late Denis Healey saying ‘a sky darkening with the wings of chickens coming home to roost’.
The loudest clucks are coming from ‘those councils who saw the wheels come off their carriage in their pursuit, honest or otherwise, of the commercial council agenda.’
The collection includes essays by a wide range of local government figures including chairman of the Local Government Association (LGA), Cllr James Jamieson, Abdool Kara, executive director of the National Audit Office (NAO) in a personal capacity, and CIPFA’s Iain Murray outlining the role of professional ingenuity to meet future challenges.
London Councils Paul Honeyben reflects on where the capital is a decade after the London Finance Commission, alongside a county viewpoint from Surrey County Council leader Cllr Tim Oliver, and from the District Council’s Network the thoughts of chairman Cllr Sam Chapman-Allen, as well as a parish perspective from NALC’s Jonathan Owen.
Appealing to the Government to ‘change the tide of the political times’ in the forthcoming March Budget, Mr Werran added: ’As is evident from our wide variety of contributions, while there isn’t a great hope for radical fiscal liberation after the next general election, the system has within it the seeds of reformation and resolution.’
