Ainsworth Signs Petition for Fair Council Tax Funding in Surrey Print
Wednesday, 01 April 2009 00:00

East Surrey MP, Peter Ainsworth, has signed a petition on the Downing Street website calling for the Prime Minister to ‘urgently review funding levels for local Government in Surrey.’

In 2008-2009, residents in Surrey received £205 funding per person from central Government, compared to a national average of £595 per head. This leaves Surrey County Council to fund 81 per cent of its services through revenue raised from council tax.

The petition, started by Cllr Nick Skellett, Leader of Surrey County Council, currently has 1,205 and signatures.

Peter Ainsworth commented:

“For too long, residents in Surrey have suffered from an unfair funding formula, and it is time that the Government recognised the huge contribution the County makes.  

“Surrey County Council has worked hard to keep council tax as low as possible whilst providing the level of service that taxpayers expect, but it has not been an easy task.  

“I encourage all residents to take the time to sign the petition and leave the Prime Minister in no doubt that a review of funding in Surrey has become vitally important.”

Notes:

  • Surrey County Council has limited its council tax increase to 60 pence a week on average, an increase of 2.9 per cent.
  • In the Government’s latest funding settlement, Surrey County Council received a £2 million funding increase – effectively a cut when inflation is factored in. This increase is less than 0.3 per cent of the council’s overall budget.
  • The only cut in services has come in the cost of back office operations.
  • In 2008/09 the Government gave Surrey residents £205 funding per person for services, which was well below the national average of £595. By comparison, Manchester got £856 for every person it served.
  • People in Surrey make a net contribution of £5.5 billion annually to the Government – and that means every man, woman and child in the county contributes £5,100 to the public purse.
  • The figures for Surrey’s net contribution to the Government are contained in a report for South East County Leaders called Taken for Granted: Why Britain Needs a Fair Deal for theSouth East. It was produced by Local Government Futures and Oxford Economics