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

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.

Polly Simpson

Neil Amin Smith
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 February 2025).
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