Last week I met with Luke Hall, a government Minister for Local Government.
I was pleased to see the local government funding settlement has seen Stoke-on-Trent City Council get a 7 per cent increase in funding for the 2020/21 financial year.
However, I did press the Minister over the need for a much larger settlement in future. This is due to the low amount we take in through Council Tax, as the majority of homes in the city are category band A, B and C.
I also lobbied to try and bring back the pilot scheme which enabled the City Council to keep 100 per cent of its business rates. The Minister told me that for 2021/22 the City Council will retain 75 per cent of its business rates.