TOWN hall chiefs fear the most basic services in Bolton could have to be axed after news that vital government funding is set to be slashed.

In his Spending Review this week, Chancellor George Osborne announced the phasing out of the Local Government Grant — which currently provides the bulk of Bolton Council’s budget.

The Chancellor said this will be mitigated by new measures meaning councils can keep all of the business rates collected in an area as well as a plan to allow authorities to raise council tax to pay specifically for adult social care.

But council bosses — who will find out the full detail of the financial settlement they will receive next month — fear there will be a funding shortfall that will leave an “intolerable” situation in Bolton.

Executive cabinet member Cllr Nick Peel said: “We have got to hold our breath and wait for the details but the cuts that local government have endured so far have been absolutely massive — we can’t take any more.

“More cuts will mean that we will not be able to run basic services that people in Bolton rely on us for.

“Scrapping the Local Government Grant is the bulk of our income and while they have said we can keep all of our business rates, this will differ massively between local authorities and areas like Bolton could lose out.

“Currently that money is re-distributed according to need and unless there is an element of that in the new arrangement, it could put huge pressure on the finances of councils that are not wealthy, like Bolton."

Earlier this year the council agreed cuts of £43 million from its budget, which followed on from the £100 million in savings it has had to make since 2010.

Cllr Peel said the constant cuts have left the authority in a state of “anxiety and frustration” for the past five years.

He added: “If they continue, there are many who think they might as well just abolish local government altogether.”

Conservative leader Cllr David Greenhalgh has previously said he believes local government has borne an unfair brunt of government cuts.

He said: “We know there is going to be a national cut to the department but what we have to lobby for is that the different needs and challenges of northern metropolitan areas like Bolton are recognised.

“I think we have gone as far as we can go — I don’t know where else the money can come from.”

The Local Government is in agreement with council leaders about the threat to basic services.

The organisation's chairman Lord Porter said: "Even if councils stopped filling in potholes, maintaining parks, closed all children’s centres, libraries, museums, leisure centres and turned off every street light they will not have saved enough money to plug the financial black hole they face by 2020."