Local Government Finance Report (England) 2026-27
277Ayes
143Noes
Carried · majority 134 · Government won227 did not vote
647 Members · Aye 277 · No 143 · DNV 227 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
Parliament approved the government's local government finance settlement for England for 2026-27 on 11 February 2026. The settlement determines how central government funding is distributed to English councils. The vote passed by 277 ayes to 143 noes. The settlement sets the funding levels local authorities in England will receive for the coming financial year to run services including social care, housing, and waste collection. Approving it allows councils to plan their budgets with confirmed central government allocations in place. Rejecting it would have left the funding framework unresolved. Labour MPs voted unanimously in favour, with 274 votes from Labour and Labour and Co-operative members combined. All 87 voting Conservatives and all 51 voting Liberal Democrats opposed the settlement, as did three Reform UK members and one independent. No Labour rebels were recorded. The Liberal Democrats joining the Conservatives in opposition reflects cross-party concern from the council-funding perspective, though both parties voted no, suggesting the opposition was broadly united against the settlement's terms rather than divided on principle.
Voting Aye meant
Support the Labour government's proposed funding distribution to English councils for 2026-27
Voting No meant
Oppose the settlement, likely arguing the funding levels are inadequate or unfairly distributed across councils
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped Aye
247
0
114
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
87
29
Liberal Democrats
Whipped No
0
51
20
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped Aye
27
0
15
Independent
—
3
1
9
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
Whipped No
0
3
5
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
—
1
0
4
Green Party of England and Wales
—
0
0
4
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
0
2
Your Party
—
1
0
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
1
0
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
0
0
1
Ulster Unionist Party
—
0
0
1
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Defends the settlement as restoring fairness by reconnecting funding with deprivation after 14 years of Tory cuts; announces £740m additional grant funding and £2.6bn recovery grant for most deprived councils.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,666 words) →
Opposes the settlement as leaving two-thirds of councils worse off; criticises shift of funding from statutory services to poverty-based allocations and attacks removal of rural services delivery grant.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (3,187 words) →
Welcomes multi-year settlements and SEND deficit relief but cannot support the settlement; criticises removal of remoteness funding and excessive reliance on council tax to balance budgets.Liberal Democrat · Voted no · Read full speech (1,939 words) →
As Chair of Housing Committee, welcomes fairer funding formula and SEND support but urges deeper reform of council tax and fundamental review of mandatory service demand on councils.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,863 words) →
Supports the 31% funding increase for Harrow but highlights ongoing council mismanagement, service failures in children's and adult social care, and continued need for scrutiny and oversight.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (2,371 words) →
Rejects settlement as failing rural authorities; argues removal of remoteness funding and rural services delivery grant amounts to pork-barrel politics favouring Labour urban councils.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (1,053 words) →
Questions why food waste recycling costs not met with traditional new burdens funding; highlights unequal treatment between Conservative and Labour council areas in Worcestershire.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (460 words) →
Criticises insufficient support for Shropshire despite inherited Tory mismanagement; notes council tax increases don't offset core funding cuts and rural costs are unaddressed.Liberal Democrat · Voted no · Read full speech (133 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0