WORCESTER City Council has failed in its bid to secure an increase in its central Government grant.

In December last year, it was announced that Worcester was to receive the minimum grant increase for a shire district council of 3 per cent.

The council felt the city had been short-changed, particularly when compared to other similar cities with county town status.

Its proposals to slash £1.4m from the budget to avoid a huge deficit in 2003/04 had been based on an estimated increase of at least 3.5 per cent.

In January, council leader Councillor Stephen Inman led a delegation to Westminster to discuss the settlement with Tony McNulty MP, a junior Minister in the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

Along with the council's chief executive, David Wareing, and chief finance officer, Grahame Lucas, he argued that Worcester deserved to get extra money.

But at a meeting of the cabinet last night Coun Inman said their bid had failed.

Speaking after the meeting, he said he was very disappointed with the Government's decision.

"We definitely deserve more money to spend on our county town functions," he said.

"The cabinet will be reviewing this argument over the coming year in readiness for next year."

"The Government may have turned us down this year, but we are not going away," Coun Inman added.

However, although the bid for funds failed, Worcester is to be given an extra £11,000 by the Government because it overestimated how much the city would collect in council tax.

"The grant was worked out on the basis that our council tax base would have increased," said Coun Inman.

"But it has in fact dropped. So we have gained £11,000 purely on a technicality."

With all the figures now in, the cabinet has to work out its final budget proposals, which are due to be made public in the next two weeks.

They will be discussed by cabinet on Tuesday, February 25 and will then go before the full council on Tuesday, March 4.