Labour Leader Carl Marshall has written to the Chancellor demanding a fair deal for County Durham in his upcoming Autumn Statement.
The letter comes ahead of Jeremy Hunt’s Autumn Statement on November 22, in which he’ll lay out government spending priorities and has opportunity to reverse damaging Conservative cuts that have seen many public services cut or struggling to survive.
Since 2010, the government has repeatedly slashed council funding, leaving a growing number warning they face bankruptcy – with Durham County Council stripped of a staggering £250m over the past 13 years.
The cross-party Local Government Association warned that the combination of rampant inflation, rising homelessness, and increased cost of delivering services, such as children’s social care, mean councils are facing a £4bn funding gap by March 2025.
Commenting on the letter, Cllr Marshall said:
“County Durham deserves a fair deal. We have been unfairly targeted by government cuts. Conservatives have quarter of a billion pounds from our county! That is a staggering amount to lose, but the impact goes way beyond that – had we not been required to cut anything, DCC would have been able to spend a forecast additional £2.1billion, since Tories gained power alongside the Lib Dems in 2010.
“Unfunded pressures are pushing council finances to the brink. Hard-pressed households in County Durham are struggling to recover from the Conservative government’s disastrous decisions that crashed our economy. The government should take responsibility for funding local services, rather than once again forcing councils to increase council tax bills.
“The Chancellor must use the Autumn Statement to deliver the fair deal for County Durham we deserve. If he cannot, the Conservatives should call a General Election and give the country the chance to vote in a new government that has a plan to give us a brighter, better future.”