Local government has two sources of funds - money raised locally via taxation, and a grant from central government. To take Birmingham as an example, the centr

Local government has two sources of funds - money raised locally via taxation, and a grant from central government. To take Birmingham as an example, the central government grant in 2010 was £1.125bn, but that had been reduced to £250m by 2020. Some of this was offset by locally retained business rates (£550m which previously went to central government) but there's still a shortfall of £525m (more when you account for inflation). Local government has responded by cutting services to the bone, and focusing on those services that they are required by statute to provide. Some councils also took a shot at commercial property investment (they're barred from investing in residential property for ideological reasons). You can imagine how those investments are doing in the post-WFH world. So over the past decade all the slack (and then some) has been removed from the system. So when something unexpected comes along (like a £760m equal pay award) it's the straw that breaks the camel's back. But the root cause is the decade of austerity we've just suffered. Cutting back even further isn't the answer.