Maidenhead & Windsor

The government announced on 06 December 2007 the provisional Revenue Support Grant settlement for 2008-09 to 2010/11. At first sight the headline announcement looks promising as the average annual increase nationally is some 1.5% over inflation.

However, the government believes that Royal Windsor and Maidenhead Borough, along with many authorities in the south of England, should collect much more money from local residents through council tax and the new calculation for formula grant suggests that we should receive £9.5 million less than we will.

Recognising the impact this sort of reduction would have locally the government has put in place a safety net, or floor protection, which means that formula grant will increase by just 2%, 1.75% and 1.5% over the next three years. Taking inflation into account this means a cut in grant in real terms.

The government has also reduced the funds available to support the capital programme. By "converting" cash grants into borrowing approval the government has cost the Windsor and Maidenhead Borough close to £1m a year. In many authorities this transfer has minimal impact but the "conversion" gets caught up in the safety net and the Borough loses out. It is clear that any capital expenditure incurred in the Borough, no matter how high on the government’s "wishlist", will need to be met from the Borough’s own resources.

Cllr David Hilton, lead member for Windsor and Maidenhead finance said: "We have become very used to poor grant settlements and this year is no exception. A poor settlement has been factored in to the considerable work we have done on next year's budget and we have focussed our attention on driving forward efficiency savings."

Cllr Hilton further commented: "The government's statements that it will replace specific grant to support school buildings, the Local Transport Plan and other capital expenditure by Supported Capital Expenditure when no funding is actually provided is typical of government double speak.

“Having said that I am most concerned about the government’s stated aim to phase out the safety net. We know that this will not happen in the next three years but it represents the one of the major financial risks that the council faces beyond 2010/11."

Cllr Hilton concluded: "This Conservative administration pledged to keep council tax increases at or below inflation and we intend to keep that pledge."

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead