As I said earlier, we are giving councils a larger share of the cake of discretionary spend—that share has gone up by about 1 per cent.

However, I acknowledge the point that Alex Rowley makes. It is undoubtedly the case that there is pressure on public services, and local authorities are no different in that regard. We cannot have more than 10 years of austerity for that not to be the case. As we enter the budget process, I am more than happy to discuss with Alex Rowley his views and ideas on local government. If he would like to meet me to have such a discussion, I would be more than happy to do so.