County facing ‘ severe financial uncertainty’ after funding blow

THE leader of North Yorkshire County Council has warned that authorities such as his face “severe financial uncertainty” after receiving less emergency coronavirus funding than other areas.

Local Government Minister Robert Jenrick has announced an extra £ 919m in emergency grants to councils in England.

It is the fourth round of funding that the Government has rolled out since March, and brings the total amount awarded to £ 4.6bn.

The grants are not ringfenced, so cash- strapped councils under pressure because of the pandemic will be able to use them however they see fit.

North Yorkshire County Council ( NYCC) is set to receive £ 2,367,689 in the latest round, meaning it has been given £ 31,890,277 to date.

That amounts to £ 51.53 per head of North Yorkshire’s population of 618,898 – with the area ranked at 146 out of 150 for the funding received by county or unitary authorities in England.

This compares with areas such as Knowsley in the North- West, which has received £ 18,170,905 in total, but is ranked at top of the list with £ 120.26 per person.

NYCC leader Carl Les, speaking in his role as finance spokesman for the County Councils Network, said the latest funding announcement was “unexpected and disappointing” for county authorities, warning it was not proportionate to the scale of the problems they face. “Our members were already facing a funding shortfall, and it is critical that all councils receive the funding they need to cover additional expenditure, which will increase over the winter months,” he said.

“Even if these resources were proportionate, county authorities still face severe financial uncertainty in the next financial year and beyond, with underlying funding gaps exacerbated by coronavirus.”

Of nine English regions, Yorkshire and the Humber ranks fourth overall for the amount received through the four rounds of funding at £ 471,543,695 – or £ 85.30 per person – behind London, the North- West and the North- East.

The figures do not include individual support being negotiated by councils moving into Tier 3 restrictions.

The Government says its funding formula takes into account an area’s population size, levels of deprivation, the cost of delivering services in different parts of the country, and how much funding councils received in the previous three rounds.

Mr Jenrick, Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, said: “Since the start of the pandemic, we have backed local councils with the funding they need to support their communities, protect vital services and recover lost income.

“This extra £ 1bn funding will ensure that councils have the resources that they need over the winter and continue to play an essential role on the front line of our response to the virus while protecting the most vulnerable and supporting local businesses.”

Our members were already facing a funding shortfall. Council leader Carl Les, speaking on behalf of the County Councils Network.