Davey puts Kingston's case in Parliament

29.10.02

Ministers may switch Kingston from "east London"

In a Commons debate last Thursday, Edward Davey, Lib Dem MP for Kingston and Surbiton, has again argued that Government reforms to the council grant system could badly hit Kingston. Edward Davey had already expressed concerns about a range of proposed changes that could hit local council taxpayers, but after a private seminar in Parliament with the Minister of State for Local Government, Nick Raynsford, Mr Davey detected signs Ministers may be listening to his campaign against classifying Kingston as "east outer London" - which alone could lose the Borough millions.

Speaking in the House of Commons, Mr. Davey put on record that the Minister had agreed to examine the problem caused by the proposed classification of Kingston and said:

"Will my hon. Friend take it from me that our labour market and our labour costs in the borough of Kingston, and also in Merton and Sutton, are similar to those in west London? The simplest solution would be to place those three boroughs with the grouping in west London."

Commenting afterwards, Edward Davey said:

"Reclassifying Kingston as "East Outer London" is not just a silly mistake - it has serious financial consequences for Kingston's council taxpayers and residents. "West Outer London" seems to be the most sensible category for us - we must be in a category that reflects our true geography and costs."

Mr.Davey also intervened in the Commons debate to try to ensure that Working Families Tax Credit is taken into account properly in the new proposals, based on eligibility rather than take-up.