Emma Reynolds, Labour MP for Wolverhampton North East and Shadow Housing Minister, has criticised the government for the disproportionate, excessive and unfair cuts to the local government grant to Wolverhampton City Council, highlighting that the cut to Wolverhampton’s grant is much higher than the national average.“This Tory-led government has put Wolverhampton City Council in an extremely difficult position. For the past three years, this government has consistently cut the council’s grant, by some of the largest margins in the country. Nationwide, the government has cut its local government grant between 2010 and 2015 by 37%¹, but in Wolverhampton the cut will be over 50%. This means the council is now in a position where it will have to make large scale cuts that will be damaging to the services it provides to people in Wolverhampton.

“When the Prime Minister came to Wolverhampton in October, he claimed, referring to the council’s spending cuts, that ‘it’s a smaller cut than the average’. It is obvious that this claim was highly misleading. Wealthier authorities like Oxfordshire County Council, have had to make much smaller cuts than Wolverhampton.

“David Cameron should apologise for his misleading claims. He will have to explain to people in Wolverhampton why he has made them pay the price for his failures to solve the cost of living crisis and deliver an economy that helps hard working Wulfrunians. While he cuts taxes for millionaires, the only cuts he has given to people in Wolverhampton are to essential public services.”

January 2014