WORCESTERSHIRE County Council has delayed its budget process while it works out exactly how much money it will receive under the Government's new grant settlement formula.

At a meeting of the cabinet, members from all parties agreed that more time was needed to get to grips with the complex set of figures.

Speaking after the meeting county councillor Adrian Hardman, cabinet member responsible for resources, said the draft budget would now be put on the table for consultation at a special meeting of the cabinet on January 8.

Clarify figures

"The reason why we are not making a decision on the consultation document today is that we are still clarifying the figures with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister," he said.

"We need some time to get to grips with the new formula and mash the figures round a bit more.

"Then we will be able to come up with a definitive draft budget that we feel confident about going into a consultation process with."

The Government is planning to give the county council an increase of 6.1 per cent.

But this still leaves it at the bottom of the shire county funding pile.

Some of the new elements brought in to work out the level of grant local authorities should get have not worked in the county's favour.

Central pot

In particular, Coun Hardman said "resource equalisation" will transfer taxpayers' money from the county to a central pot, which will then be spent in deprived areas of the country.

"We will be paying tax into a central pot to build new high schools, or whatever, somewhere else, when we need them here," he said.

At the meeting, county councillors from all parties agreed that the county should send a letter to the ODPM expressing its disappointment with the Government's reforms.