No return to austerity — cancel local authority debt
Local councils — some of which now need four times the normal funding — must have their debts waived by central government, argues MARTIN WICKS
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A campaign initiated by the Labour Campaign for Council Housing calls for the government to cancel local-authority debt held by the Public Works Loans Board as an emergency measure to stave off the collapse of council services.
So far nine council leaders and five MPs have signed the statement. Cancellation would give councils £4.5 billion a year extra spending power.
The chief executive of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy warned of councils facing “a financial tsunami of reduced income and increased costs.” He was right. The financial crisis of local authorities is spiralling out of control as councils struggle to respond to the pandemic.
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