British Councils in Crisis: Why Are They Falling Like A House Of Cards?

Birmingham, the second-biggest city in Britain, declared itself bankrupt on Tuesday, shutting down all non-essential spending after being issued with equal pay claims totaling up to £760 mln ($954 million.) n the notice, the city council said it was currently in a negative general fund position because of the cost of providing for equal pay claims. The claims, it said, would result in exceeding the financial resources available to the council. "This means that spending due within that period exceeded the financial resources available to the council in that same period."