Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has accused Labour councillors of leaving Wandsworth Council with a substantial budget deficit of £137 million. Badenoch stated that the council, which Labour lost to the Conservatives in May after a single term, now faces a 'historic' financial gap.
Adding to the financial concerns, Badenoch claimed that central government is reducing the council's grant funding by 40 percent. She attributed these cuts to reforms under Angela Rayner, which she alleged prioritize funding for Labour-voting areas in the north of England.
Badenoch made these remarks during a canvassing effort for a crucial by-election, where the Conservatives aim to secure an outright majority on the south London authority. She posted on social media, "Labour left Wandsworth Council with a historic £137m budget gap. And to make things even worse, the Labour Government are cutting Wandsworth's council funding by a massive 40%."
A spending review by the incoming Conservative administration reportedly indicated that the council inherited "the largest government cuts, the largest projected overspending and the largest predicted budget gap in Wandsworth's history." The review claimed that the previous Labour administration had utilized reserves to balance the budget, increased staffing by 14 percent since 2022, and increased spending and borrowing without a corresponding rise in revenue.
The report also suggested that Labour viewed the borough's historically low council tax as a problem. It warned that Wandsworth's council tax would need to increase by over 230 percent to balance the budget if no immediate action was taken. The current annual bill for a Band D property in Wandsworth is £1,020, with half of that amount going to the council. The average across the country is more than double that figure. Wandsworth is reportedly considering a 160 percent increase in its portion of the council tax bills next year, which would represent a historic percentage rise.
In response, Wandsworth Labour leader Simon Hogg stated, "When Labour ran Wandsworth Council we had the lowest council tax in the country, the highest reserves of any neighbouring borough and no external debt." He further asserted, "The new Conservative administration has brought chaos. They are extreme and divided and clearly don't have a plan for how to run the council."