Opposition councillors at Surrey County Council have welcomed the Chancellor's promise of £1bn towards social care funding across the UK - but it is still unclear how this will affect Surrey.
Surrey leader David Hodge caused uproar in January after announcing plans to hike council tax by 15 per cent - what would have been the largest in the country and would have triggered a county-wide referendum.
Last month, Cllr Hodge U-turned on the decision minutes before a vote was due to take place after a "gentleman's agreement" with those in central government.
Hazel Watson, leader of the Liberal Democrat opposition at the council, said the pledged funding of £1bn by Chancellor and Weybridge MP Philip Hammond in today's Budget "does not go far enough to tackle" the shortfall.
She said: "I welcome the £1bn of new money towards plugging the gap in social care funding but I am concerned that this does not go far enough to tackle the funding shortfall.
"The Liberal Democrats had called for an extra £2bn of funding for adult social care in 2017/18 in order to tackle the national crisis in adult social care.
"The government has only allocated half of what is needed and so I fear that the problems that we have here in Surrey will continue."
A county council spokesman said: "We won't be saying anything yet because we need to go away, look at the figures and see what this means for us."
- Got a story? Call the newsdesk on 0208 722 6313 or email rachel.dickerson@london.newsquest.co.uk
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel