Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Brandon Lewis and Yvonne Fovargue

Monday 17th December 2012 Commons Chamber

[Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)]

9. What factors he has considered in allocating grants to local authorities for 2013-14.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Brandon Lewis)]

We have consulted widely with the local government sector and have given close consideration to the wide variety of responses that we received. We will publish the settlement for 2013-14 shortly.

[Yvonne Fovargue]

Wigan metropolitan borough has faced cuts of £108 per person, with more to come, despite high levels of deprivation and a high number of people with life-limiting illnesses. West Oxfordshire, on the other hand, has had cuts of £34 per person, despite much lower levels of deprivation and health issues. Does the Minister think that this is fair?

[Brandon Lewis]

Putting aside the baseline from which councils start, we have to bear it in mind that metropolitan areas such as Manchester have had a city deal worth about £1.5 billion, the new homes bonus, enterprise zones and £25 million in Growing Places funds. Local authorities should look at everything they are doing. There is £60 billion of procurement across local authorities. They can look at integrated shared management services. They should be cracking down on fraud and error, which last year alone cost £200 million.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Brandon Lewis and Yvonne Fovargue

Monday 12th November 2012 Commons Chamber

[Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)]

17. When he expects to announce the allocation of the transitional council tax grant to local authorities.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Brandon Lewis)]

The Government published on 18 October the grant allocations that local authorities will be able to claim if they comply with the terms of the transitional scheme. These are available on the departmental website. The deadline for claiming the grant is 15 February, and payments will be made by the end of March 2013.

--- Later in debate ---

[Brandon Lewis]

Under the previous Government, the council tax benefit bill went from £2 billion to almost £4.5 billion. It is right that this Government are dealing with the deficit that the previous Government left us and sorting out the economic problem. We are letting local authorities deal with what they need to do locally, and we have put in place £100 million to protect the most vulnerable, whom councils such as the hon. Lady’s unfortunately seem to want to hit.

[Yvonne Fovargue]

Wigan is consulting on a number of proposals, all of which, by necessity, will hit the working poor, people with disabilities, or families with young children. Does the Minister believe that forcing councils such as Wigan to chase people in those vulnerable groups for money that they simply do not have is either fair or a good use of council tax payers’ money?

[Brandon Lewis]

Again, I hope that the hon. Lady’s authority will do what it is supposed to do and look after the most vulnerable. Instead of attacking the most vulnerable, it should be dealing with its back-office costs, cutting down on fraud and error worth £200 million last year alone, and taking advantage of this Government’s scheme to help the most vulnerable, while still bringing down the benefits bill, which the last Government sent from £2 billion to nearly £4.5 billion.