Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Luke Hall and Theresa Villiers

Monday 22nd February 2021 Commons Chamber

[Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support local authorities during the covid-19 outbreak.

[The Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government (Luke Hall)]

The Government have allocated more than £8 billion directly to councils since the start of the pandemic. In addition, councils will receive more than £3 billion of support in 2021-22 for both additional expenditure and loss of income. That takes the total support committed to councils in England to tackle the impacts of covid-19 to more than £11 billion.

[Theresa Villiers]

I sincerely thank Ministers for the substantial financial support they have given to local government at this difficult time. May I appeal to them to continue that, not least to enable local authorities to play their part in supporting people to live healthier lives with more exercise and recreation, so that we can generate the broader health recovery that this outbreak tells us we need?

[Luke Hall]

I thank my right hon. Friend for that question. She is absolutely right. This is why it is so vital that we have provided a 4.6% cash-terms increase to local government next year—a real-terms increase. I am delighted that in Barnet that means a 5% increase in core spending power—another £14 million next year to spend on local priorities, just as she mentions. Funding and supporting local government, which has been the backbone of our response to covid-19, remain an absolute priority for this Department.

Local Government Responsibilities: Public Services

Debate between Luke Hall and Theresa Villiers

Wednesday 18th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet) (Con)]

rose—

[Luke Hall]

I give way to my right hon. Friend.

[Theresa Villiers]

I hope the Minister and the House will take this opportunity to pay tribute to all the workers involved in local authority services, including those in the care sector—not only care workers but cleaners, too—as well as those who cleanse our streets and who collect our refuse. None of them can work at home, and all of them are putting themselves at risk by being in the public space to do their job to keep society safe and to keep society going. It is important to send out the message that we appreciate them, just as we appreciate our wonderful NHS staff, too.

[Luke Hall]

I thank my right hon. Friend for those words. She is absolutely right: we should commend our public servants and local authorities hugely for the work they will be doing in the days and weeks ahead, and I would like again to put on the record my thanks to them. If the hon. Member for Warwick and Leamington (Matt Western) will bear with me, I will touch on his point a little later.

We have already outlined an extensive package of support to combat the effects of this crisis. A lot of the points made by the hon. Member for Worsley and Eccles South and other hon. Members were, rightly, about future funding for local authorities. I completely understand that, and perhaps it is worth addressing that at the start of my remarks.

The Chancellor announced last week that £5 billion would be made available for the public service response, with more to come if and when it is necessary. Let me say right from the start that we know that councils are under considerable financial pressure in responding to this crisis. We know that they will need more financial support from the Government, and we will give them that support. We are still having conversations with the sector—the Local Government Association and councils —to refine exactly what that might look like, but we will outline further steps we intend to take in this area very shortly.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Luke Hall and Theresa Villiers

Monday 24th February 2020 Commons Chamber

[Luke Hall]

I will later today present our finance settlement, which the hon. Lady can vote for if she really thinks that there is not more money going to local authorities. There will be a 4.4% real-terms rise, a £1 billion social care grant, and a further £500 million that can be accessed, and the rise in council tax will be the lowest since 2016.

[Theresa Villiers (Chipping Barnet) (Con)]

Does the Minister agree that, with the enhanced spending power that local authorities are about to get, they should prioritise care for disabled children? The needs of such children are becoming more complex, and we want to do more as a society to support them, so that should be reflected in the decisions of local government.

[Luke Hall]

Of course, it is for local authorities to decide their individual local priorities, but my right hon. Friend is right to highlight the fact that the real-terms increase in core spending power for councils up and down the country means that money can be invested in the services that local authorities need the most.