The New Homes Bonus should not be used to ‘prop up revenue accounts,’ a senior local government figure has said.
President of the Association of Directors of Environment, Economy, Planning and Transport (ADEPT), Heather Barnes, said she was unhappy with the way the bonus was being used.
Speaking ahead of ADEPT's annual conference in Manchester on the 5 and 6 of November, she said: ‘I think there has to be a link between the New Homes Bonus funding and the future needs of the place.
ADEPT president Heather Barnes
‘I’m falling short of it being ring-fenced but I certainly don’t think it should be used to prop up revenue budgets.
‘It would cause some councils a particular challenge, but if it’s being used to prop up a district’s revenue budget that budget needs thinking about for its own sake.’
The news comes after Transport Network revealed through Freedom of Information (FOI) requests that just 17 of the 261 responding English councils allocated a specific portion of the New Homes Bonus funds towards transport or highways infrastructure, equating to just 6.5%.
Click here for our interview with Heather Barnes, and see here for our sister publication The MJ's take.
