The biggest barrier to being able to plan for the future is uncertainty. As if years of austerity were not enough, councils face what must be one of the most uncertain periods in their history.

First, we have the parliamentary uncertainty created by the outcome of the General Election and the ‘confidence and supply' arrangement between the Conservatives and the DUP. The absence of a Local Government Finance Bill means there are no concrete plans to relieve the funding cliff-edge after 2019/20.