Lib Dems warn National Service plan would see cuts to vital services

Please see a template below on the Conservative Party’s announcement of plans for National Service, funded through slashing Shared Prosperity Fund (SPF). 

Figures on funding allocated through the fund can be found here. 

Lib Dems warn National Service plan would see cuts to vital services in [AREA] after scrapping of £[INSERT LOCAL FIGURE] in local fund

The Liberal Democrats have warned that the Conservative Party’s plans to spend £2.5 billion on National Service would lead to cuts to vital services in [AREA].

The Conservatives have said their plans would be paid for by slashing funding for local areas through the Shared Prosperity Fund from 2028-29, which funds projects that boost jobs and living standards, improve public services and build pride in local communities.

This fund has provided £[INSERT LOCAL FIGURE] million of funding for [AREA] from 2022 to 2025. Local projects funded include [ADD ANY LOCAL EXAMPLES].

The Liberal Democrats said it showed the Conservative Party had completely the wrong priorities, and called on the government to reverse their plans to slashed troop numbers by 10,000 instead.

Liberal Democrat spokesperson for [AREA], [NAME] commented:

“The Conservative Party has already done so much damage to people’s living standards and public services in [AREA] with all their chaos.

“Now they want to slash funding for local services to pay for their hare-brained plans for a National Service, which are nothing but a desperate distraction from the government’s record of failure on the NHS and economy.

“If the Conservatives were serious about defending Britain’s security, they would reverse their plans to cut the Army by 10,000 troops.”

ENDS

Notes to Editor:

Funding by area provided through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus/ukspf-allocations