Councils in Greater Manchester will get more than £70m in the latest round of emergency funding as the government reverses its decision on using a formula which gives more money to the most deprived parts in the country.

A total of £70.9m has been allocated for Greater Manchester’s 10 local authorities in the fourth tranche of additional funding from government - with Bolton granted £6.7m.

Earlier this week, The Bolton News revealed how Bolton Council will have to make £40m of budget cuts this year,

This extra funding is being provided alongside the £82m Greater Manchester is expecting from the government for entering Tier 3 Covid-19 restrictions.

But the 10 boroughs still face a financial shortfall in excess of £200m in total.

Unlike in the second round of coronavirus funding in April, the government has used the ‘relative needs formula’ to calculate how much each council receives. The funding formula favours the areas with the highest levels of deprivation.

The methodology used this time also takes into account how much councils missed out on in April’s allocation and makes up some of the difference.

Back in April, Bolton Council leader David Greenhalgh said he would fight for more funding, but explained the relative needs formula was not used in the second tranche because district councils had been disproportionately hit. Now, the borough will receive some of the money it missed out on in April.

Coun Greenhalgh said: “It is clear that areas that have inequalities and areas of deprivation such as ours do need extra help, and have been disproportionately hit economically during the pandemic, and it is right that government has listened and allocated Tranche 4 using a formula that recognises these challenges and on the basis of need.”