A senior Conservative councillor has launched a scathing attack on Labour MPs, accusing them of 'financial gaslighting' over claims that Dudley Council is set to receive a multi-million pound funding windfall.
'A master class in financial gaslighting'
The row erupted during a meeting of Dudley Council's cabinet on 14 January 2026, where the authority's finance chief, Cllr Steve Clark, presented his financial plan running until 2029. The plan is based on the government's draft fair funding settlement.
Cllr Clark directly addressed Labour councillors, stating: "We have had an exceptionally poor settlement, your MPs announcing £76m of extra funding was a master class in financial gaslighting." He suggested the claim could be the result of "deliberate deception, political spin, creative accounting or double accounting" and dismissed it as 'complete nonsense'.
Breaking down the disputed figures
Cllr Clark explained that the Labour MPs' figure of a £76m increase and a 22 percent rise in spending power was misleading. He argued it included the 2024/25 financial year, which is not part of the current budget cycle. Furthermore, the calculation assumed a full 4.99 percent council tax increase, which the council had already factored into its existing plans.
According to the council's analysis, the actual increase in core spending power over the relevant period is far lower. A report by the council's chief finance officer, Lisa Kitto, shows Dudley's spending power will rise from £343m in 2024/25 to £419m in 2028/29. While this is a 22 percent increase from the 24/25 baseline, the rise from the current 2025/26 year to 2028/29 is 11.7 percent.
For the next financial year starting in April, the council will have £394m to fund services, a five percent increase on the current year. Cllr Clark concluded that the council is left with a total settlement of £7m over three years, against an expectation of £18m.
Political fallout and context
Labour's finance spokesperson, Cllr Shaukat Ali, defended his parliamentary colleagues, urging the council to view the settlement in the context of past cuts. "You only need to go back a few years to see how much was cut by the Conservative government – over £120m from this borough," he said.
Council leader, Cllr Patrick Harley, highlighted the practical impact, stating that if the £70m figure were accurate, it could have prevented planned council tax rises. "If we had £70m more I may well be putting pressure on officers to say 'let's not increase council tax by five percent for the next three years' but we can't do that," he told the meeting.
The clash underscores the deep political divisions over local government finance and sets the stage for further debates as the council finalises its budget in the coming months.
