For four years we have been told by the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Harrow East MP that reductions must be made in public services because of the size of the national debt in 2010/2011.

We were also told “we’re all in this together” by the Prime Minister. What we were not told was that local government was to take more than its fair share of the reductions and now the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA) has proven the case. What case I hear you ask? That this Government is destroying local government services with vicious and excessive cuts.

Council tax only pays for a minority of the cost of local services, so the health and vitality of local government is reliant on the largesse of central Government.

Roughly, in England and Wales, of every £1 local authorities spend, only 18p comes from council tax.

CIPFA has published a report showing spending on housing, leisure, libraries and roads are all being “dramatically reduced” as council budgets have been cut by more than 33.3 per cent over the five years from 2010 to 2015. Once adjusted for inflation this is a cut of just under 30 per cent in real terms.

And what does Harrow Council’s opposition say to its Government about these destructive cuts? Nothing. During the recent local election campaign voters told me they want the highways repaired, the streets cleaned, the parks maintained and rogue private sector landlords dealt with.

This is difficult to achieve when the Government is destroying local services while protecting large companies and banks who continue to underpay or not pay their fair share of the tax burden.

Cllr Barry Kendler

Lab/Edgware ward, Harrow Borough Council