13 February 2004
Scottish councils have told ministers they are entitled to the entire £47m that is Scotland's share of the extra expenditure recently allocated for the UK by Chancellor Gordon Brown.
In his pre-Budget speech in December, Brown announced about £340m of new cash to help local authorities with their spending on key services and decisions on the council tax. Scotland's share has been calculated at £47m but it is up to the Scottish Executive to decide how that money should be used.
Leaders of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities fear there is a danger that some of the money will be used for other services, and have called on Finance and Public Services Minister Andy Kerr to give a guarantee that they will receive their full entitlement.
Their concerns were voiced on February 12 as Scottish authorities prepared to announce their council tax increases. It is expected that the average Band D tax in Scotland will rise by about 4.5%.
Councils believe there is a danger that some of the money they are due might be siphoned off to help Scottish universities counter the effect of the introduction of top-up fees in England.
First Minister Jack McConnell has pledged that there will be no top-up fees in Scotland but has stressed that universities will be given extra funding to prevent them being disadvantaged.
Kerr said the entire public sector, including councils, should come up with constructive proposals about where the extra cash should go. 'The money is a one-off. I have laid down the challenge to local authorities to offer proposals that will make maximum impact for the longer term. We need to make sure that this money can make a real difference for Scotland's future.'
Cosla president Pat Watters said the simple fact was that the money was local government's and had to be used to spend on local communities. He added: 'They are the ones who deserve it and to those trying to get at it for whatever other reasons I would say: "Hands off".
'If others have priorities of their own, they should be looking at additional money for these and not seeking to rob local government.'
PFfeb2004
