Rural funding removal 'demonstrates a blatant disregard for rural communities like South Shropshire' says MP
A Shropshire MP has slammed the Government's decision to scrap the rural services grant, urging them to "rethink" proposed changes.
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South Shropshire MP Stuart Anderson is displeased with proposals to remove the Rural Services Delivery Grant that were set out in a policy statement on Thursday, November 28.
The rural services grant, that totalled more than £100 million last year and aided remote communities, is one of several funds being "repurposed" to direct funding towards more deprived areas.
Shropshire Council received £8.98 million this year from the grant - one of the largest - that was first introduced in 2013/2014.
Mr Anderson said the grant "recognised the added pressures of delivering council services in rural areas such as the higher volume of fuel used in refuse collection".
The Rural Services Network has also said it was "disappointed" to see the grant removed, and Mr Anderson believes the grant's removal will hit families and pensioners the hardest.
The MP for South Shropshire said: "The new Government's initial proposals on reforms to local government funding demonstrate a blatant disregard for rural communities like South Shropshire.
"The last government has this year equipped Shropshire Council with almost £9 million in recognition of the challenges it faces providing services in remote communities like ours.
"I am disappointed that Ministers have chosen to "repurpose" this grant and redistribute this funding elsewhere. The government was elected on a promise not to increase council tax, but its decisions mean that it could soar by up to £110 next year - hitting families and pensioners the hardest.
"With inflation already on the rise, the government must rethink its decision and deliver the funding that rural areas need."
In October, the South Shropshire MP had called for an extension to both the Rural Services Delivery and the Lower Tier Services grant schemes - that the last Government introduced to give rural support and the delivery of everyday services such as homelessness, planning, recycling, and refuse collection, according to Mr Anderson.
The Conservative MP added he will be "standing up for rural areas like South Shropshire when the government consults on its reforms".
