Labour treats London as 'Below Average' says Teather

5.46.20pm UTC (GMT +0000) Thu 2nd Dec 2004

Labour is treating London 'Below Average' says Lib Dem MP Sarah Teather

Responding to the Government's statement on local government funding, Sarah Teather MP, Liberal Democrat spokeswoman for London said:

"Despite having some of the most deprived local authority areas in England, the London boroughs have received a below-average increase in funding from Whitehall. Only seven of our thirty-two boroughs have received above-average increases.

"These smaller increases show yet again that the problems that London faces are not a top priority for the Government. If they were, we would have seen a focus on secondary school standards, poor housing and Crossrail years ago.

"What concerns me more, however, is the revaluation of council tax bands that the Government plans to announce after the election. This will almost certainly hit London and the South-East hardest as we have seen property prices here skyrocket recently. I predict big council tax increases in coming years which will further highlight the urgent need to scrap the unfair council tax and replace it with a fair local income tax."

1. The average increase in English local government grants from the ODPM announced today was 6.2%.

2. The London area got an increase in grant of 5.6%.

3. Inner London (Westminster, Wandsworth, Camden, Lambeth, Southwark, Islington, Greenwich, Hackney, Kensington & Chelsea, Hammersmith & Fulham, Tower Hamlets and the City of London Corporation) received, on average, a 6.1% increase and Outer London (all the remaining boroughs) received, on average, a 5.3% increase.

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