The country is facing important local elections in May this year, and there is a growing movement among Labour councillors who see this as an opportunity to illustrate the cost of Brexit, which OBR forecasts suggest is already running at # 72bn, versus the 40 % cuts in local authority funding which are starting to bite close to home in areas like education, health social care, transport and children's services. (totalpolitics.com)
Although today's announcement does not include additional funding, it is understood officials hope clarity on spending — particularly the allocation of local authority funding for 2019 - 20, several years ahead of time — will help schools and councils plan ahead. (schoolsweek.co.uk)
The report finds that Local authority funding for buses in rural areas has fallen by 25 per cent in the past four years, while around half of people in smaller villages do not have access to any public transport. (educationbusinessuk.net)