• Disrupting Power Since 2015
  • Donate
  • Login
Monday, May 12, 2025
  • Login
  • Register
Canary
MEDIA THAT DISRUPTS
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
MANAGE SUBSCRIPTION
SUPPORT
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion
No Result
View All Result
Canary
No Result
View All Result

Austerity is about to hit us thanks to Johnson’s coronavirus chaos

Steve Topple by Steve Topple
24 June 2020
in Analysis, UK
Reading Time: 4 mins read
165 7
A A
5
Home UK Analysis
319
SHARES
2.5k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

UK lockdown restrictions may be easing. But at the same time it seems that austerity is about to come knocking at the doors of millions of people. And so far, the government is doing nothing to stop it.

Council chaos

As The Canary previously reported in April, Liverpool City Council is in dire financial straits. It was facing a £44m black hole in its budget due to “increased costs and loss of income”. This is despite the government giving it £34m as part of its £3.2bn package to support local authorities. The council warned at the time it would have to start reducing services. And the mayor Joe Anderson said it was potentially facing ‘bankruptcy’. And now, the extent to which other councils across England are in similar positions has been revealed.

The Centre for Progressive Policy (CPP) thinktank has done research into local authorities’ finances. The Local Government Association (LGA) said there was likely to be a £6bn shortfall in local authority funding. But the CPP went further. It found:

  • 131 out of 151 English upper tier councils don’t have enough financial reserves to make up for increased expenditure and loss of income.
  • This figure includes 18 out of 19 councils which have former “Red Wall” Labour constituencies in them; the very areas the Tories pledged to help “level up”.
  • Councils have “in effect” £5.5bn in reserves. This is 7.1% of their budgets. But the CPP says coronavirus has increased upper tier councils’ costs by 10.8%.

This is where the problem lies. In short, councils are paying out more than they can afford. The CPP gave Hackney as an example. It said the council:

has already publicly stated they expected the cost of the crisis to be £72m or a 13% increase in their expenditure. This shows that unallocated reserves are highly unlikely to solve the gap in funding caused by Covid-19 for either individual councils or the sector as a whole.

Austerity looming?

The Guardian reported that councils are facing a stark choice: cut spending on all but essential services or face bankruptcy. For example, Bath and North East Somerset Council has already said it will have to make £22m in cost savings. ITV News reported that this includes:

reviewing the timetable for delivering capital projects, and reducing the council’s salary budget by leaving vacancies unfilled and offering reduced hours.

Kent County Council is already considering an increase to council tax and “major cuts”. Then, according to BBC News, Luton Borough Council is saying it may plug its £50m shortfall by:

stopping the school meals service, reductions in highways maintenance, charging for green waste collection and reduced funding for adult social care and mental health support services.

Essentially, councils are going to impose austerity to make up for the lack of government help. But there is another way.

Another way

The Socialist Party is calling on councils to pass “no-cuts” budgets. It says:

It has always been feasible for councils to stop all cuts and invest in services, and use their reserves and borrowing powers.

This would have created the space for individual councils to technically produce ‘balanced budgets’. These anti-austerity budgets could then be used to build public support for a campaign to win back the money from the government, and to coordinate with the other Labour councils around the country.

As The Canary previously reported, before the pandemic, Wirral council did this. Admittedly councils’ budgets have got bleaker since coronavirus hit. But instead of imposing austerity on some of England’s poorest people, councils should work together to force the Tories’ hands. After ten years of austerity, many communities may not cope with more cuts. So now is the time for councils to take a stand.

Featured image via YouTube – 10 Downing Street

Share128Tweet80
Previous Post

Here are the private companies with £million contracts for the failed NHSX tracing app

Next Post

Boris Johnson slammed for PMQs ‘dodgy answers’

Next Post

Boris Johnson slammed for PMQs 'dodgy answers'

Nicola Sturgeon adamant there'll be no ‘reckless race’ with England on easing lockdown

Here’s why you might not be seeing the systems of oppression that surround us

Here’s why you might not be seeing the systems of oppression that surround us

Countries around the world are taking swift action to quash Covid hotspots as England gets set to head to the pub

Countries around the world are taking swift action to quash Covid hotspots as England gets set to head to the pub

Russians begin voting on changes allowing Putin to stay in power until 2036

Russians begin voting on changes allowing Putin to stay in power until 2036

Please login to join discussion
DWP PIP cuts will hit over one million people aged 50 and over
Analysis

DWP PIP cuts will hit one million people aged 50 and over, new FOI reveals

by Steve Topple
11 May 2025
Fire at Moss Landing Battery site, CA North Yorkshire
Analysis

North Yorkshire battery site sparks fury – but is there an alternative?

by HG
11 May 2025
Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR - this time, from 60 organisations
News

Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR – this time, from 60 organisations

by The Canary
11 May 2025
UK arms exports to Israel
News

David Lammy may have misled parliament over UK arms exports to Israel

by The Canary
11 May 2025
Farage has had a good week
Opinion

#SwindonsSundaySermon: Farage and the Temu Union Jack brigade had the perfect week – at our expense

by Rachael Swindon
11 May 2025
  • Contact
  • About & FAQ
  • Get our Daily News Email
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy

The Canary
PO Box 71199
LONDON
SE20 9EX

Canary Media Ltd – registered in England. Company registration number 09788095.

For guest posting, contact [email protected]

For other enquiries, contact: [email protected]

The Canary is owned and run by independent journalists and volunteers, NOT offshore billionaires.

You can write for us, or support us by making a regular or one-off donation.

© Canary Media Ltd 2024, all rights reserved | Website by Monster | Hosted by Krystal | Privacy Settings

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password? Sign Up

Create New Account!

Fill the forms below to register

All fields are required. Log In

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • News
    • UK
    • Global
    • Analysis
    • Trending
  • Editorial
  • Features
    • Features
    • Environment
    • Lifestyle
    • Health
    • Money
    • Science
    • Business
    • Tech
    • Travel
    • Sport & Gaming
  • Media
    • Video
    • Cartoons
  • Opinion

© 2023 Canary - Worker's co-op.

Before you go, have you seen...?

DWP PIP cuts will hit over one million people aged 50 and over
Analysis
Steve Topple

DWP PIP cuts will hit one million people aged 50 and over, new FOI reveals

Fire at Moss Landing Battery site, CA North Yorkshire
Analysis
HG

North Yorkshire battery site sparks fury – but is there an alternative?

Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR - this time, from 60 organisations
News
The Canary

Labour government under further pressure over the ECHR – this time, from 60 organisations

UK arms exports to Israel
News
The Canary

David Lammy may have misled parliament over UK arms exports to Israel

ADVERTISEMENT
Lifestyle
Nathan Spears

Why More People Are Seeking Legal Advice When Separating

Travel
Nathan Spears

Hungary Vignette Adventures: Discovering Hidden Gems by Car

How Social Media Affects the Mental Health of Young Adults Today
Tech
The Canary

How Social Media Affects the Mental Health of Young Adults Today