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Local Government Funding (Poole)

I congratulate the hon. Member for Poole (Mr. Syms) on securing the opportunity to debate local government funding for Poole unitary authority. I agree with the hon. Member for Kettering (Mr. Hollobone) that the hon. Gentleman has a respected reputation for effectively and assiduously representing his constituents. Let me give the hon. Member for Poole the only aspect of my response that might offer him some respite from the rest of my speech: my hon. Friend the Minister for Local Government has accepted an invitation from Poole to meet the authority next month. That will offer local MPs and local authority members an opportunity to make direct representations, in addition to those made between the initial announcement of the local government finance settlement and the most recent announcement.