Government and council need to act on funding

Rightly so the national spotlight is pretty constantly on the Brexit negotiations, their progress and the progress towards a deal or no deal. It is the critical issue of the moment and one which will impact every one of us. But ultimately the provision of public services is also one which affects all of us and is proving equally critical - albeit on a local rather than a national scale. In his column this week council leader John Holdich says a line has been drawn in the sand - we applaud his forthright comments and the action he is taking. The city authority is not funded adequately. He believes, and he is far from the first to make this point, that the city’s expanding population is not fully taken into account and consequently nor the huge additional burden on local services that comes with it. Many would argue that Brexit will impact that issue by potentially reducing the number of people moving to the city... others have told me they are concerned the movement of people who work in local industry, health services and other areas might be restricted and that would have a negative impact. As the situation stands the city is struggling to meet the demands placed on local services and needs support now. The government’s funding formula appears to have short-changed Peterborough because of its population growth - for over a decade senior politicians, and in particular leaders of the council, have been making that point. It is time the city’s argument carried more weight. But there is also pressure on the council and other bodies to generate more income and so they should. Councils, like many private sector businesses will need to adapt and innovate more than ever before if they are to make ends meet. Taxpayers will also want to see the major benefits of councils working together and the new Mayoral authority paying off... the Government does need to be more charitable in its funding for Peterborough but we also know that charity begins at home.