A £64bn funding package provided by the government won’t "significantly change the severity" of Southampton City Council’s budget crisis, a spokesperson has said.

It was announced on Monday, December 18, that a funding package worth over £64bn to support councils in England would help deliver frontline services, according to Levelling Up Secretary, Michael Gove.

The provisional settlement available to councils across the country in 2024/25 would be a near £4bn rise from 2023/24 – but Southampton City Council said the increase in funding would have little impact on the authority, which is facing a £14m budget deficit for the current financial year.

A spokesperson for Southampton City Council said: “We are looking at the detail of the settlement, which was only provided to councils late on Monday. 

“However, there is no reasonable basis to believe it will significantly change the severity of our budget crisis for 2024/25 and beyond. 

“The government uses Core Spending Power as a measure of the change in resources and its 6.5 per cent headline increase.”

READ MORE: Top troubleshooter drafted in to tackle city's financial woes

They added: “This figure also includes an expectation of a council tax rise, as well as Government funding streams.

“If you exclude the council tax increase element from within Core Spending Power, the year-on-year change in resources is 3.5% for Southampton.”

The increase in funds announced by Mr Gove was made in part to acknowledge the pressures faced by local authorities, with the Levelling Up Secretary branding councils "the backbone of their communities".

Daily Echo:

Cllr Simon Letts, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Finance and Change at the city council, argued the cash injection was a "cut in government grant".

He told the Echo: “The majority of the 'new' money takes the form of another Council tax rise. As the government continues in its policy in shifting funding for councils away from themselves and onto the backs of hard-pressed Southampton taxpayers.

“Taking into account inflation this new settlement amounts to a cut in government grant. This is on top of a loss of over half a billion pounds of government support over the last decade.”