Labour set out plans for Barnett-style funding formula for councils

Scottish Labour has set out plans for a “Barnett-style” funding formula for councils, saying local authorities should receive funding based on services they deliver.

The party says there should be an independent commission which determines council budgets over a three-year period.

It says the commission would offer a transparent assessment of council services and how they correspond to the Scottish budget, similar to the concept of the Barnett Formula which determines devolved government budgets.

Under Labour’s plans, there would be a no-detriment relationship between council tax raising powers and central government funding.

Scottish Labour are also due to publish further proposals on devolving power to local communities.

The party’s leader Anas Sarwar said: “For years now Scotland’s councils have been cut to the bone and callously sidelined.

“The SNP and the Greens have taken Tory austerity and compounded it, siphoning money away from essential services and into ministerial vanity projects.

“Now libraries are closing, roads are crumbling, bins are over-flowing, and councils are facing even more impossible choices.

“The SNP’s relentless contempt for local government has left current funding system in tatters.

“We need to put a stop to this daylight robbery and guarantee truly fair funding for councils with a new independent system.”