Cuts hitting most deprived areas SIXTEEN times harder than least deprived

New analysis shows that the ten most deprived boroughs have been hit 16 times harder by local government cuts than the ten least deprived boroughs. Using the Government’s measurement, the most deprived local authorities spending power-per-dwelling has dropped by an average of £782.10, while the least deprived authorities have only seen council funding cuts of £48.35.

The London Borough of Newham, the third most deprived area in the country, has had its council funding cut by over £1,000 per household, while the districts of Elmbridge, Waverley, Surrey Heath and Wokingham, which are amongst the least deprived, have all seen their spending power rise.

Hilary Benn, Labour’s Shadow Local Government Secretary has written an open letter to Local Authority leaders, reaffirming Labour’s commitment to devolution – and slams the Coalition for leaving the councils who need most help worst off:

“The Prime Minister and the Local Government Secretary say that tough times involve tough choices, but they have forgotten one very important principle. Tough times demand tough choices that are fair. And yet if we look at the way in which the Tory led Government has chosen to take most from those who have least – the most deprived local authorities – it is clear just how unfair and unjustifiable this is.

“David Cameron’s Government have made the wrong choices. They have ducked tough decisions and passed the hardest ones down to you, and they have failed to apply the basic principle of fairness. They had a choice, and they made the wrong one as far as communities up and down the country are concerned.”

Update: Here’s Benn’s letter to Local Government leaders in full: