Local Government Finance Bill

I shall speak about the business rates proposals, the many gaps in the Bill and the unanswered questions. The councils that have faced the biggest cuts will lose most from the proposed changes to business rates. The impact of the local government cuts on businesses will take many years to work their way through, because there will be less money in the economy where the cuts in the public sector are greatest. In Sefton the cuts are already affecting businesses that rely for much of their trade on the public sector. The economy in Sefton, Liverpool and across the north-west will face greater pressures than the areas where the cuts have been far smaller.