We're petitioning the Labour Council to continue funding Birmingham's roads!
Changes to the funding model for Birmingham's roads are coming soon. The Labour council failed to submit a business plan showing the best value for money to the Government by the agreed deadline. This means that Labour's plan, which was submitted late, would have spent more money than necessary to achieve poorer results. Labour's plan was for the government to give a private company £50 million a year to maintain Birmingham's roads. Under new plans, this money will now go directly to the Council instead, maintaining current levels of government funding for Birmingham's roads.
This means the £50 million a year the government has given Birmingham since 2010 is continuing IN FULL.
The government will continue to provide £50m a year for highway improvements in the city for at least the rest of the current spending round, which doesn't end until after the next General Election. In line with all departmental budgets, funding beyond that will be confirmed by the government of the day based on their own priorities.
Currently, however, the Labour Council is reviewing whether to continue matching this funding (as has been the case for the previous decade), which means Birmingham could lose up to £57 million in funding for its roads every year if the Labour Council do not continue this matched funding.
Cllr Tim Huxtable (Con, Hall Green South), Shadow Cabinet Member for Transport said:
"We have been informed by the City Council that the Government is continuing to provide £50 million a year for Highways Improvements to the City, the same amount as the PFI, the only change is the money will now go directly to the Council rather than the PFI company. This means the only cuts there will be to highways work in Birmingham will be if the Labour Administration choose to cut it".
Cllr Ewan Mackey (Con, Sutton Roughley), Deputy Leader of Birmingham Local Conservatives, & the Opposition, said:
"It's been grossly irresponsible, and not transparent, of the Labour administration to claim they’re losing £50m a year when the Council in fact admit they will now get it directly instead"
Gary Sambrook MP (Con, Birmingham Northfield) also said:
"I have been lobbying for Birmingham City Council to retain the £50m a year for highways from the Government. Now the Council have confirmed they will be getting this directly rather than via a PFI the Labour administration needs to confirm to residents they won't slash the Highways budget".
It is also concerning that the Labour Council currently has over £100 million in unspent Highways funding from previous years. Sadly, they have allowed the roads to deteriorate rather than using the money they had to fix them. We are also calling on them to repair Birmingham's roads.
It is important to note that as there is no cut in government funding, if the highway budget is subsequently cut, it will be solely due to the decision of Birmingham's Labour administration.
