How will government cash boost help Suffolk council budget?

On Wednesday Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove announced that the government was going to make £500m extra available to local councils for the next financial year.

That came days after 44 Conservative MPs - including all of Suffolk's backbench Tories - signed a letter telling the government it had not given enough to local authorities.

Mr Gove made it clear that the bulk of the money he was giving should be spent on social care - so it is expected to be directed at county and unitary councils across the country.

The exact amount Suffolk is getting has not yet been revealed by the county, but given its size in comparison with other authorities it could expect to receive between £3m-£4m of a national £500m pot.

The actual amount is expected to be revealed to Tory councillors at a private briefing before the next cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

That had been due to rubber-stamped by the council's cabinet at its public meeting on Tuesday afternoon after members have had a full and frank discussion about the proposals behind closed doors in the morning.

Now, however, councillors will be presented with amended figures - although council leader Matthew Hicks admitted the extra money would only go so far.

He said:  “We very much welcome the announcement of further Government funding for councils. It appears that the lobbying by our MPs, councils across the country and ourselves has paid off.

“This helps, but does not solve, the financial challenges we are facing. We will now consider how this will impact our budget-setting for next year.”

One thing they might consider is whether the threat to withdraw £500,000 in core funding from theatres and museums from April 2025 needs to go ahead.

The move has caused a national outcry - but with funding for the next financial year in place they might decide it is too early to consider a U-turn at this stage.