BRACKNELL'S MP insists he is '100 per cent' behind the council in its ongoing battle with the government over funding cuts, despite supporting the 'principle' of grant reductions.

Dr Phillip Lee, member of parliament for Bracknell since 2010, is urging the government to review the cuts to Bracknell Forest Council's funding which could see £12.5m shaved off the budget for 2016/17.

However, he does the support cuts to local government budgets 'in principle', saying finances should be more locally accountable and rely less on central government due to the 'wholly unsustainable' amount of spending across the country.

Council leader Paul Bettison joined Berkshire's five other council leaders this month to confront the Tory government over the unprecedented cuts to their Revenue Support Grant - a key source of local authority's income.

Dr Lee said: "I am 100 per cent behind the Leader of Bracknell Forest Council, Cllr Paul Bettison, and his colleagues, in calling for the impact of the Local Government Finance Settlement to be reviewed and its implementation to be rescheduled.

"The motives behind the settlement, in principle, are correct - I believe that local spending should be locally accountable and so moves towards less central government funding coupled with allowing local authorities to keep more of money they raise are a welcome step in the right direction.

"Nationally, borrowing is still too high and the level of expenditure wholly unsustainable. The government is rightly continuing to take measures to bring our large, but falling, budget deficit under control."

He urged the government to reconsider the cuts as it could send the wrong message to hard-working councils and leave too short a time-frame for the council to adjust its plans.

Without a review, the council will have only days to balance the budget which is due to come into force from April 1.

Cllr Bettison said even officers with a 17-year track-record of predicting grants and budgetary pressures, were in shock over the level of cuts revealed in the Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement on December 23.

Dr Lee's involvement in the budget chaos comes just one week after he praised the Conservative government for supporting Bracknell's economic success.

The News asked if he felt the sudden budgetary pressures on the council reflected the government's 'sound stewardship' of the economy.

In a statement, Dr Lee replied: "I was able to use the opportunity of a question to the Prime Minister to highlight the achievements of Bracknell, especially its fantastic record on jobs, businesses and investment.

"This improvement has been helped in no small measure by the government’s economic and social reforms, and Bracknell Forest Council has contributed fully to the area's economic success. I now hope the government and local authorities can come work together once again to ensure that an agreement can be found."

Budget cuts are, at the moment, 'front-weighted' Cllr Bettison says, with the majority of savings that will have to be found in the next four years coming from the 2016/17 financial budget.

He is asking the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to consider spreading the level of cuts equally in each year.