Funding will continue to go down for years to come, communities secretary Eric Pickles warned delegates at the County Council's Network (CCN) conference in Chester this week.
Mr Pickles received a hostile reception at the conference – where new chairman, Surrey CC leader David Hodge, had previously vowed to stand up for county councils.
During questions, the Tory leader of Leicestershire, CC Nick Rushton, asked the secretary of state: ‘Why are you always so rude to us? It's about time you spoke up for us in Government.'
Mr Pickles responded: ‘It's about time to face up to reality.' He claimed the cuts would have happened under any government and added: ‘I haven't done anything that I didn't warn you I was going to do.'
When quizzed about a shortage of cash, he told delegates: ‘You have to work out the
allocations yourself – you are going to have to prioritise'.
He warned: ‘The funding is going to go down for several more settlements' Mr Pickles also warned delegates not to be ‘democracy dodgers' when it came to council tax, by raising taxes to just below the threshold that would trigger a referendum.
‘People are paying more in council tax each month than they are in energy bills,' he said. ‘If you think you should put up your council tax, take it to the people…. But don't tell me the electorate are too stupid to understand.'
He later added: ‘There's nothing wrong with local democracy… I don't know why you are all so scared.'
Speaking to The MJ, Cllr Hodge commented: ‘It was a robust discussion, which is good for local government. The people we represent would want us to have a robust discussion with the secretary of state'.
Cllr Hodge also called for the national political parties to commit to overhauling the way councils are funded.
He claimed the funding formula works for areas of high deprivation, but not for anyone else – and the circumstances the current funding formula was designed for have now shifted.
‘It's time for the Government to give England our own regional funding arrangements,' he told The MJ. ‘I would be looking for a manifesto commitment.'
