Did anyone really believe it when the coalition claimed to be ‘progressive’ and that it would stand up for the worst off in society? The local government cuts are an extraordinarily clear example of the vindictiveness of the government and its wholly political approach to funding. Their motto should be ‘we look after our own’.
Where do the biggest cuts fall? From South Tyneside, Sunderland and Hartlepool in the north east to Southwark, Hackney and Tower Hamlets in London, those getting the biggest cuts of over 8% read like a list of the most deprived communities in the country. And who does well? Little surprise here as well. It’s Dorset, Kent, Bucks and the Tory shires. You can get figures for all councils here.
If the division isn’t strictly political, there is a clear inverse correlation between the size of the cuts and the level of deprivation.
Nationally, the LibDems seem to be getting all the flak while hard core Tory policies just steamroller through. Even if they support cuts of this scale, surely they don’t support this distribution between councils?