Local Government Finance

Debate between Paul Goggins and Tony Lloyd

Wednesday 9th February 2011 Commons Chamber

[Tony Lloyd]

Let me try to bring the hon. Gentleman forward a little in his thinking. Manchester would love to have done that. Manchester has not made compulsory redundancies—possibly it is true to say—in my lifetime. Manchester is now having to do that because the pace of the cuts that his Secretary of State is making is so rapid that it has no choice. For an authority such as Manchester, 25% of the budget cannot be taken out of the pot without that resulting in compulsory redundancies.

[Paul Goggins]

Does my hon. Friend agree that the comments, remarks and challenges coming from Government Members reveal a complete lack of understanding of the nature of a city like Manchester? Manchester is a world leading city. It is founded on two things—first, a strong partnership with the private sector and secondly, over recent years, having the money to invest in the communities that need it. Does my hon. Friend share my concern that their ignorance and arrogance mean that the progress that we made is put at risk?