This note addresses the questions raised by the HCLG Committee's Local Government Finance and the 2019 Spending Review inquiry. It discusses past changes to local government funding and the current situation of councils, the fitness-for-purpose of of the local government finance system and options for its reform, and how spending needs are assessed locally and nationally. 

    Authors

    David Phillips
    David Phillips

    Associate Director

    David is Head of Devolved and Local Government Finance. He also works on tax in developing countries as part of our TaxDev centre.

    Report details

    DOI
    10.1920/re.ifs.2024.0403
    Publisher
    IFS

    Suggested citation

    N, Amin Smith and D, Phillips and P, Simpson. (2019). Response to the Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee’s Local Government Finance and the 2019 Spending Review inquiry. London: IFS. Available at: https://ifs.org.uk/publications/response-housing-communities-and-local-government-committees-local-government-finance (accessed: 14 November 2026).

    Grant

    Local Government Finance Consortium

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