Leader calls for fair funding for local government in wake of Autumn Statement

Leader Councillor Andreas Kirsch said:

“The situation remains critical for councils up and down the country following the chancellor’s Autumn Statement. We are facing rising demand for vital support and spiralling costs from things like energy bills, and government funding is failing to keep pace with the situation.

“Local authorities need a fair funding deal and the government urgently needs to get to grips with how to properly deliver this.

“More than half of everything we spend in Kingston each year goes on providing residents with social care support and these needs are rising all the time. Despite these pressures, practically all of Kingston’s core government funding has been removed. Years of underfunding has seen the government reduce our central grant from £66m in 2010 to just £4,000 this year. 

“While we welcome the extra support announced for adult social care, it is still not enough to meet the increasing needs of vulnerable families in our borough. We need proper funding to protect vital services for residents.”