WEST Devon Borough Council is pressing the Government for a better financial deal following a new independent study, which reveals that council services cost more to provide in rural areas. The report, by Rita Hale, an independent local government finance expert, says that the costs of refuse collection for borough and district councils are between 72% and 90% more expensive in rural areas than in towns and cities. It also says that the way the Government awards its annual grants to local authorities fails to take into account the cost pressures faced by sparsely populated councils. West Devon is one of the most sparsely populated authorities in England with a population of around 50,000 in an area equivalent to the size of Greater London. The council?s waste management service which includes a weekly refuse and recycling collection costs more than £1.5 million a year, over 20% of the Council?s net budget. The Rita Hale study was commissioned for SPARSE, a partnership of almost 60 rural local authorities in England of which West Devon is a member. The study was recently discussed by West Devon Councillors. Chairman of the council?s strategies and resources committee, Cllr Dick Eberlie, said: ?This authoritative and independent study gives real evidence of the financial pressures that a rural area like West Devon has to face. ?It reinforces what we have always known ? that services do cost more in rural areas.? Later this month, the Government is expected to publish a White Paper on local government reform and SPARSE will be calling on ministers to change the local government finance system to take account of the extra costs of providing services in rural areas.
