I thank the Minister for his response. However, I would like to make a couple of points. I do not think he has addressed the fact that we still have this huge issue of funding not being fairly allocated. That is the whole consideration. I completely appreciate that the figures are different now and that things have moved on; the Covid pandemic changed the situation for councils. But how long will it be before further consultations and discussions take place? How long will it be before we have another proposal, and will that be looking at fair reallocation? This is something that has been promised to councils for an awfully long time, and it is frustrating that it is potentially going to drag on for years longer, because we still have that disparity of core funding.
The extra funding mentioned by the Minister such as the levelling-up funds is not part of what we are talking about in this instance. It does not deal with the fundamental problem of the long-term fairness of allocation of funds right across the board. The Government may say that they are giving a particular council some extra money or there is this bit coming in, but that does not deal with the ability of councils to know in the long term what kind of funding to expect and be able to budget and plan services accordingly.
Finally, the lack of fair funding, which means that many poorer areas have less money, is only exacerbated by council tax returns—richer areas tend to receive more because their properties are of a higher value—and this is particularly true for business rates, as poorer communities do not tend to have businesses that pay the higher rates of tax to local authorities. So, while I will withdraw my amendment, I really think that this needs to be considered in more detail.