Corbyn accuses PM of cutting 'sweetheart deal' with Surrey Council over social care

The Labour leader has claimed the Government offered Surrey County Council cash to drop its plans to increase council tax by 15% to pay for social care.

Jeremy Corbyn accused Theresa May of cutting a "sweetheart deal" to see off the embarrassment of a Tory-run council putting up bills because of a lack of Government funding.

Surrey County Council had announced it was going to hold a referendum to ask residents to increase council tax by 15% - around £200 on the average annual bill - to pay for social care.

However, it dropped its plans this week, saying it would instead only increase bills by 4.99%.

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Mr Corbyn used Prime Minister's Questions to ambush Mrs May with a string of leaked text messages he claimed showed the Government had offered the council money to drop its plans.

The embarrassing texts were sent from the council leader David Hodge to a man called "Nick" amid the ongoing social care crisis.

One message from Mr Hodge said: "the numbers you indicated are the numbers that I understand are acceptable for me to accept and call off the R........"

It added: "Really want to kill this off."

Sky sources understand the texts were intended for Nick King, the special adviser to Local Government Secretary Sajid Javid, but actually sent to Nick Forbes, the Labour leader for Newcastle City Council.

Mr Forbes shared them with Labour's Local Government Association team, because he felt it unfair Surrey should get preferential treatment, and they passed them to Mr Corbyn's team.

Mr Corbyn asked Mrs May: "So how much did the Government offer Surrey to kill this off and is the same sweetheart deal on offer to every council facing the social care crisis created by her government?"

Mrs May failed to respond directly to the allegations, but a Downing Street spokesman said: "I'm not going to comment on leaked text messages but I can assure you there is not sweetheart deal."

Mr Hodge released a statement saying: "Surrey's decision not to proceed with a 15% council tax increase was ours alone and there has been no deal between Surrey County Council and the Government.

"However, I am confident that the Government now understands the real pressures in adult social care and the need for a lasting solution."

Announcing the U-turn on the council tax increase earlier this week, Mr Hodge had indicated he had been in talks with the Government.

He said: "The Government has listened and we believe the Government now understands.

"We are therefore willing to take a risk that a solution will soon be found for the issues that all councils face."

The deputy leader of Lancashire County Council said he would be "appalled" if there was a "sweetheart deal or bribe".

"We need to look very closely at the small print of the final local government settlement and budget announced by the Chancellor - a Surrey MP - in a few weeks to see if there is any hidden money going in Surrey's direction and not to anyone else," Cllr David Borrow said.

Shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth has called for an inquiry and the publication of all correspondence between the council and Government departments.

He said: "I want to know what meetings Jeremy Hunt and his team have had with the leader of Surrey County Council to discuss this."

A Department for Communities and Local Government spokesman said: "The Government is not proposing extra funding to Surrey County Council that is not otherwise provided or offered to other councils.

"We are, however, conscious of the medium and long-term pressures that all councils face from a growing and ageing population.

The Government is therefore delivering broader reforms to local government finance - through bespoke Devolution Deals, the integration of health and social care, a Fairer Funding Review, medium and longer-term reforms to support adult social care, and the move, from 2019/20, to 100% business rates retention across the country."

The decision by Surrey to hold a referendum on the council tax increase was widely viewed as a political manoeuvring because it was unlikely families would vote for a rise.

It was particularly embarrassing for the Government because Surrey contains the constituency of the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who is under fire because of the current NHS crisis gripping the country.

As well as Mr Hunt, the county covers the constituencies of 11 Tory MPs, including Chancellor Philip Hammond, former Justice Secretary Michael Gove, chair of the Foreign Affairs select committee Crispin Blunt and Transport Secretary Chris Grayling.

Mr Hammond had been tipped to include a boost for social care funding in his Autumn Statement, but Number 10 has been accused of blocking it.