Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has defended the financial support available to councils in the face of a mounting black hole in North Yorkshire Council’s budget.
Prime minister defends council funding amid £40m black hole in North Yorkshire's budget Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has defended the financial support available to councils in the face of a mounting black hole in North Yorkshire Council’s budget. Mr Sunak was speaking at Harrogate Bus Company’s headquarters in Starbeck yesterday (Monday) where he met staff from the firm and faced local journalists alongside Harrogate & Knaresborough MP Andrew Jones. Several councils have issued section 114 notices effectively declaring themselves bankrupt with other councils in Yorkshire including Kirklees and Bradford in a precarious position. Senior councillors at North Yorkshire Council, which was created out of the ashes of the seven former district councils plus the county council, have insisted the authority is not at risk of going bankrupt. But it’s facing pressures on several fronts and is forking out huge sums of money on adult social care and special educational needs provision. It’s also seen energy costs skyrocket across its vast estate since the covid pandemic and war in Ukraine. This month the goverment agreed to hand councils across the country £64billion over the next financial year, which is an increase of 7.5%. However, the Conservative-run North Yorkshire Council is still facing a deficit of £41.6m, which is the amount of money it needs to continue to run services at their current level. Mr Sunak, who is also MP for Richmond, was asked by the LDRS if he has concerns about the authority’s finances. He said:
“We’ve just concluded the local government finance settlement and put an extra £600m into local government and across the north, councils have about 7.5% more money to invest in local services this year than last year. That gives you a sense of the scale of the increase. “Rural areas like North Yorkshire also get specific money because of the difficulty in delivering services. On top of that, the government is investing in local communities whether that’s in transport or levelling up, so they are getting direct investment.”Mr Sunak fielded several questions related to transport and he praised the £2 bus fare cap which he said has resulted in a 50% increase in the number of passengers using buses in Harrogate. He also said the recently announced business rates relief will help under-pressure small businesses in Harrogate. He added:
“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy and there are fantastic ones across Harrogate and North Yorkshire. “Their number one concern is business rates and coming into this year there will be a 75% reduction for a typical bill. We want vibrant high streets and our business rates tax cut will make a meaningful difference to them.”By Thomas Barrett, Local Democracy Reporter Read more local stories from Your Harrogate here.
Storm Bert brings snow disruption
Painting by local artists unveiled at Harrogate Hospital
Theme revealed for Great Knaresborough Bed Race 2025
Harrogate's North Pole Post Office returns for festive season
Grants still available to improve shop fronts and accessibility in Harrogate
Details revealed for Otley Christmas lights switch on
Harewood House stars in new national Range Rover advert
Molly-Mae Hague spotted at luxury Ripon hotel
Super volunteer clocks up 200 hours of community work at just 14
Harrogate Theatre's Beauty and the Beast set to open next week
Light up a Life service returns to children's hospice
Ripon Food and Gift Fair to return tomorrow
Roads around Ripon market square to reopen following resurfacing
Italian restaurant in Harrogate named among UK's top 100
Trains struck 97 objects in past year – with some items 'deliberately' placed on tracks
Ripon businesses set to host late night shopping event
Harrogate woman with MND creates charity recipe calendar
How Harrogate health and wellbeing services have helped transform lives
Harrogate Food and Drink Festival to return to Ripley for sixth year
New denture clinic opens in Harrogate
