London’s budget for 2023-24 now published 

The final 2023-24 GLA Consolidated Group Budget was approved by the Mayor and London Assembly on 23 February 2023.

Thank you to everyone who joined the conversation and had their say on the draft budget back in January.

The final budget confirms some changes to the council tax proposals announced in December. Following   confirmation of the level of funding the government would provide to City Hall and the rules on council tax increases, the Mayor concluded it was necessary to propose an increase in the Band D council tax next year by £38.55 (the equivalent of 74p per week), of which:  

• £20 will be used to  keep Transport for London (TfL) services running. The government required the Mayor to raise additional revenue to compensate for lower levels of fares income resulting from an increase in people working from home following the pandemic.    
• £15 will be used to raise an additional £46.7 million for the Metropolitan Police Service, as required by the government. This will fund an additional 500 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs). This investment will also be spent on providing better support for victims of crime, particularly women and girls.  
• £3.55 will be used to support the London Fire Brigade as it modernises following the Grenfell Tower fire tragedy.

The final budget includes the latest forecasts for the council tax and business rates income from London’s local authorities (the 32 London Boroughs and the Common Council of the City of London). These forecasts are higher than previously anticipated in the Mayor’s consultation budget.    

As a result, the Mayor announced additional investments, focusing on the areas that matter most to Londoners.    

Supporting Londoners through the cost-of-living crisis  

The final budget includes over £216 million to support Londoners  through the cost-of-living crisis. This includes: 

• £130 million to provide free school meals in the 2023-24 academic year for primary school children across London. 
• £51 million on the Warmer Homes Programme. 
• Additional support for rough sleeping and advisory services. 

Protecting our transport network  

Many of you shared concerns about public transport in London and the forthcoming expansion of the Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ). 

Since the consultation budget, £52.6 million of additional transport funding has been allocated. This includes:  

• £33 million to save over 70 bus routes under threat. 
• £6 million to provide an additional one million kilometres of bus routes. 
• £9 million to save monthly and annual paper travel cards, which were due to be scrapped under the terms of the government’s TfL funding deal. 
• £4.6 million to provide more cycle routes and infrastructure. 

The Mayor’s final budget also  allocates £110m for a scrappage scheme for low-income Londoners, small businesses and charities impacted by the ULEZ expansion. The Assembly has called on the government to provide additional investment to fund a comprehensive scrappage scheme, similar to that provided to other parts of England. 

Improving the Metropolitan Police Service  

Reducing crime further remains a top concern for many Londoners. Since the consultation budget, an additional £64.9 million was added to the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) budget. This will provide an additional 500 Police Community Support Officers (PCSOs) across London at an annual cost of £26.8m. This uplift will take the total number of PCSOs to the highest level since 2016.  

These PCSOs will serve as a visible police presence,  help reduce crime further and rebuild community relations and public trust in the police.  

£15 million of the additional funding has been allocated to raise standards within the police. 

Over £13m has been allocated to fund initiatives to tackle violence against women and girls, County Lines and Serial Predatory Offenders. 

£7.5m has also been allocated to provide better support for victims of crime.  

Addressing the climate emergency  

We received several comments on increasing spending on environmental initiatives. The Mayor has added a further £38.2 million to create  a new Environmental Improvement Reserve of over £134 million. This will support future work to help London achieve carbon net zero by 2030.  

Affordable and energy-efficient housing  

Many of you were concerned about the affordability of homes in London.  Several respondents also called for additional spending to make homes more energy efficient.  

The Mayor continues to build a record number of new affordable homes for Londoners and has also used this budget to fund the  the Warmer Homes Programme, which  provides grants of £5k-£25k to low-income households to fund the installation of energy efficiency measures.  

What’s next? 

The individual bodies which make up the GLA Group are finalising and publishing more detailed information on their final budget plans for the financial year beginning in April 2023.   

As always, we will keep you posted on any new opportunities so you can have your say and help shape plans and policies at City Hall.   

Thank you for taking time to engage with us.