Councils could face £3.3 billion funding cuts, LGA warns

The findings were published in the LGA’s annual ‘Future Funding Outlook Report’ on 29 June and warn that councils will need make further savings next years, equivalent to 12% of their total budgets.

The report also includes predictions for the next five years and suggests that funding will continue to be reduced by a further 11% in 2017/18 and 4% in 2018/19, before increasing by 7% in 2019/20.

The total of the combined predictions, as well taking into account the increasing demand for social care for an ageing population, would mean a funding gap of £9.5 billion by 2020.

LGA chair, cllr David Sparks, said: “If our public services are to survive the next years, we urgently need a radical shift in how public money is raised and spent, combined with proper devolution of decision-making over transport, housing, skills and social care to local areas.

“Fairer funding for local services, and the freedom to pay for them, will allow councils to tackle the big issues facing their residents and protect services which bind our communities together and protect our most vulnerable.”

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