Funding levels up for councils

Final results of a survey – covering 62 of the 88 English and Welsh local authorities – carried out by West Sussex County Council county treasurer Bryan Robinson on behalf of the Societies of County, Metropolitan and Welsh Treasurers, and London Councils – revealed funding levels had risen from 74.9 in 2004 to 83.5 last year.

The report revealed the average local authority fund earned a rate of return of 14.3pc per annum in the three years to March 2007.

But it said real gilt yields were around 0.5pc per annum less than they were in March 2004 and longevity had increased – both factors increasing liabilities.

The report said: "On the one hand, there is a need to pay for people living longer in the future, but on the other the phasing out of retirement before 65 and the introduction of a new-look LGPS with a fairer basis for cost sharing between taxpayers and recipients has mitigated this.

"Employee contributions will rise from 6pc to an average of 6.3pc with the introduction of tiered contributions and the government is committed to introduce guidance in respect of sharing costs between members and employers by March 2009 to deal with future LGPS cost pressures."

• PP published preliminary res-ults from the survey on May 15.