Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to ensure equitable funding for (a) Hinckley and Bosworth borough council and (b) Leicestershire county council.

We are committed to undertaking a review of the relative needs and resources of local authorities in England. The review will consider the drivers of local authorities’ needs, the local resources available to them to fund services, and how to account for these in a way that draws a more transparent and understandable link between local circumstances and local authority funding.

We aim to develop a funding methodology that will give a more up-to-date and robust assessment of the needs and resources for every local council, including those in Leicestershire.

We are working closely with local government representatives and others to examine all elements of the review. We aim to share emerging results with the sector shortly, followed by a full consultation in the Spring. Our aim is to implement the review in 2021-22.