RESIDENTS dissatisfied with the reduction in council services in neighbourhoods all over the borough will surely seriously consider if they can ever vote Tory again as the nauseating facts about government funding of councils are laid bare.

The facts from independent think tanks are that the cuts to councils in England continue to be clearly targeted at the towns and cities where there is much social deprivation and social need.

This is an appalling state of affairs.

Richer parts of the country like the Tory shires have escaped the onslaught having budget cuts of less than 10 per cent.

Remember, these rich areas where those councils can gain more in business rates because there are so many more firms there and they can receive more from the middle and higher bands of council tax because more people live in those homes there.

Everyone knows the Tories have been giving tax cuts to rich earners, but it is less noticed that the Tories have been busy protecting the rich councils, too.

What a disgusting state of affairs. One of the calculations at the think tank sums it up.

In the rich Tory areas of England, the cuts to those councils means that about £68 per household has been lost.

In streets in Bolton, imagine if only £68 was taken out of what the council spends on all the council services that affect the people in the properties.

There are bins and recycling, the street cleaning and the public space grass cutting.

Think too of staff who visit homes to assess older people, adaptations provided in homes and children's social workers.

And remember that every year need for council services has gone up.

There are more children who need social workers, more older adults who need help as the numbers of older people grows at fast pace.

Now consider that in streets in Bolton, and at some other Labour councils, the calculation is we have lost well over £350 for every home in the borough.

It is this government that is stopping Bolton Council providing the town with the services people want here. The council cannot clean the streets or cut the grass easily when there are old people in need or children being harmed who need help.

These dire straits are entirely brought to you by the Conservatives.

Why would you even consider voting for them any longer?

We need politicians that want to support our local council to be able to satisfy the needs of the public being served here.

Cllr Sue Haworth

Bolton Council