THE Government has caused chaos for councils by making last minute changes to funding within weeks and even days of crunch budget talks, a councillor has said.

Green councillor Ollie Sykes said he had never known it so bad for central Government to be so late in telling councils what funding they are set to receive.

As a result he said it had left cuts to services hanging in the balance.

Council budgets were given a significant tweak on Monday when the Government announced £300 million of transitional funding for rural councils.

The move was criticised for favouring Conservative councils with opponents arguing the funds were going to wealthier authorities instead of those in the most deprived areas.

Brighton and Hove City Council will receive just £39,000 of that funding in 2016/17 and £48,000 in 2017/18 – a sum council leader Warren Morgan has described as derisory.

By contrast, East Sussex County Council, who set their budget just 24 hours after the extra funding announcement, will receive £6.2 million more over two years while West Sussex will have an additional £12.5 million.

Council officers confirmed at last night’s meeting that they were still uncertain about the exact level of funding from certain grants with full council set to vote on the budget in a fortnight’s time.

The budget has now been recommended to full council to discuss after being agreed last night with around £19.4 million of cuts.

The cut will see five children’s centres and Tower House day centre close.

The council has had to make fewer savings than first feared because of George Osborne’s surprise move in November to allow an additional two per cent rise in council tax without a referendum for adult social care spending.

Brighton and Hove City Council also received in excess of £400,000 more than anticipated in the local government settlement, first announced in December but only confirmed in the last few days.

Council tax receipts from this year have also been higher than expected.

Cllr Sykes welcomed that significant cuts of up to £25 million, announced before Christmas, had been reduced.

But he added: “The council budget has been chaotic because of the announcement of the government settlement, I have never known it so late.

“It has caused this administration huge problems.”