By Saul Cooke-Black

GREEN Party councillors fear a government pledge to give local authorities full control over business rates will lead to greater inequality.

Chancellor George Osborne announced the "biggest transfer of power" in recent history at the Conservative conference in Manchester on Monday.

He said: “Attract a business, and you attract more money. Regenerate a high street, and you’ll reap the benefits. Grow your area, and you’ll grow your revenue too.”

Councils will be able to keep all of the revenue generated from business rates under the new proposals set to come into force from 2020.

Sarah Lunnon, county councillor for Stroud, said: "This will undoubtedly result in a race to the bottom as local councils compete to attract and keep business by lowering business rates to levels that will damage our economies and hurt services to all residents.

"It will increase the inequality that we already have between wealthier councils in areas such as London and poorer ones in the rest of the country."

District councillor Simon Pickering (Green, Slade), said: "This is clearly not a transfer of revenues or powers to local government but is simply another half cooked idea from a chancellor who is still clearly in the pocket of the establishment and seems to have little understand of local government or even what a free market is, rather than control from central office.

“Greens would welcome full local tax raising powers to be devolved to local government but the Chancellor’s scheme, despite all the smoke and mirrors, is still hampered by the dead hand of state control by central government."

Supporters say the scheme will encourage councils to support and attract business while providing a cash boost to under pressure local authorities.

Stroud MP Neil Carmichael voiced his support for the idea, saying it would act as ‘a vehicle to promote growth in the Stroud economy’.

Addressing concerns it would promote greater inequality between different regions, the Conservative MP said that safeguards would be introduced for councils in poorer areas with low business growth.