Shipley MP pushes senior officials on support for local councils

Anna Dixon MP for Shipley, has used her role on the influential Public Accounts Committee to stand up for Bradford and push senior officials to clarify how the government plans to financially assist local councils.

The Public Accounts Committee, of which Ms. Dixon became a member in October 2024, is a Select Committee composed of MPs. Its role is to scrutinise government officials, ensuring that public funds are spent effectively and efficiently.

During a section of last week's oral inquiry session on "Local Government Financial Sustainability," the Shipley MP took the opportunity to ask the panel of witnesses, which included Sarah Healey, the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, and Nico Heslop, the Director of Local Government Finance, about the current fiscal challenges faced by Bradford Council.

Anna Dixon MP for Shipley said: “There are councils, like Bradford council, that are already in exceptional financing because half their budget from the central Government grant has been cut over the last 10 years.

“They have had to spend down reserves and sell off assets, and they will owe money because of the exceptional finance that they have been provided with. I cannot see how they will get from here to there, or how they will have any bandwidth while they wait for new settlements.

“What is your message? How are councils in that position supposed to bridge the gap and continue to meet even their statutory needs in terms of social care and temporary accommodation?”

In response to Ms Dixon’s question, Nico Hessop recognised the difficulties that Bradford Council has faced and emphasised that his department has been working constructively with Council leadership to address the situation.

Replying to Ms Dixon’s question, he said: “We have worked incredibly closely with Bradford, in a very collaborative way, absolutely recognising the picture that you have set out.

“In a one-year settlement, we did as much as we possibly could. Ministers took some difficult decisions.

“Specifically for Bradford, it led to a 9% cash-terms increase. You got £17 million from the new recovery grant that we introduced, which is specifically targeted at need and deprivation.

“From first-hand experience of speaking to the council and the children’s trust, I know that the big thing that Bradford is trying to do is reform its children’s services. I suspect that the longer-term plan on children’s service reform will happen, and that is the way out of it.”

After the session, Anna Dixon MP said: “I will continue to work with the new Labour government and our local council leaders to advocate for a new local government funding formula and a settlement agreement that will benefit the people of the Shipley constituency and the Bradford district.