Badenoch has ‘instructed lawyers’ to challenge cuts to Tory-run London council

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The Conservative Party has “instructed lawyers” to challenge government cuts to a Tory-run London council, which they say amounts to 40%.

These cuts are forcing Wandsworth to increase its council tax by 94%, according to Kemi Badenoch.

Speaking to Matt Chorley on BBC Two’s Newsnight, the Conservative leader claimed the Government is deliberately taking money away from areas that do not vote Labour and giving them to places that do.

Mrs Badenoch said: “I think it is outrageous that Wandsworth Council is having to put up council tax. But they’re not doing it because they want to.

“It is because the government has taken away 40% of their funding. So we have actually instructed lawyers, as the Conservative Party, to see if we can challenge the Government on this decision.

“Because what it looks like Labour is doing is taking money from areas that don’t vote Labour and giving it to places that do vote Labour.

“And I think that’s completely wrong. I think it is outrageous. So we’re talking to lawyers.

“Andy Burnham has not found 40% of anything to cut, but he’s asking Wandsworth to do that. I don’t think that’s fair. I don’t think that’s right.”

Wandsworth, which has historically had very low council tax, is one of a handful of councils that have been granted two-year “funding realignment powers”, which enables them to increase council tax beyond the 5% threshold.

Mrs Badenoch said: “I think if you suddenly have a nearly 100% increase in your council tax, you would be extremely worried.

“Families have budgets. Just because on average it’s lower than somewhere else doesn’t mean that people are going to be able to afford it.

“We have to do the right thing. And what I would ask Andy Burnham is if he thinks it’s so easy to find 40% of cuts why hasn’t he done that with the welfare bill?”

She added: “Right now it’s about the principle of it: that you don’t just take money from areas because they’re not voting for you and give them elsewhere. That’s the principle that we are challenging.”

Mrs Badenoch insisted the Conservatives “would never” slash council budgets by 40% because they were voting Labour.

Wandsworth was Conservative-run from 1978 to 2022, when it flipped to Labour.

It ended up with no overall control in this year’s local elections, with the Tories scaping by as the largest party with 29 councillors to Labour’s 28.

The Department for Housing, Communities and Local Government has been contacted for comment.