Derry and Strabane rates: People are right to question rise - MP

Over the last few years the price of almost everything, household outgoings and business expenses have increased and people in Derry have been harder hit than most.

It is so disappointing then that the work done by local people to enhance our community and deliver better services is so poorly valued by the Executive and the Tories at Westminster who have run down the funding available to support local initiatives and projects through the Rates Support Grant.

Steady cuts have seen our community deprived of investment and opportunities. Incredibly, if the grant had increased in line with inflation from 2008, Derry and Strabane council would be getting support to the tune of £6.25m, not the £900,000 that has instead been allocated to local services.

And with a substantial deficit in the amount of money needed to meet our ambitions, the council has too often decided that the pain for making up the difference should fall on ratepayers.

People across Derry are finding it tough to make ends meet right now. The cost of living crisis may have disappeared from news reports but it is still hurting families across our city who are paying more for food, energy, rent and rates.

decline

It is fundamentally wrong that people who have seen public services decline in recent years are being asked to may more for the privilege of getting less. I do not believe that is sustainable in any sense.

The SDLP team in Derry worked constructively to avoid an increase in rates at such a hard time for residents.

Our councillors made suggestions, looked at different areas where money could be saved without impacting service quality, but their pleas have sadly fallen on deaf ears.

As a political leader I have written to the Department for Communities seeking an uplift in the Rates Support Grant which would leverage pressure off people who can’t afford an additional financial burden on their household.

The SDLP cannot in good conscience support making life more difficult for people who are already struggling to make ends meet, put food on the table or petrol in their cars.

increase

The increase in rates agreed this week will make a minor difference to our council’s budget, but the story will be very different for those who are already struggling to keep their heads above water.

The sad reality is that many families in our city are barely scrimping by and this increase will be a further blow.

At Westminster, the Assembly and our local councils the SDLP Opposition team is determined to stand up for ordinary people, as we have since the cost of living crisis began. Far too many people are having their dignity stripped form them, while huge companies enjoy record profits, while governments across these islands refuse to do anything about it. We should be using all levels of government to help those who need it most, not supporting increased costs for those who can least afford it.