The leader of Bromley Council has defended the decision to stop taking in lone asylum-seeking children until the government stumps up more cash.

Pressure to opt back into a London-wide agreement to take in vulnerable children is growing after the leader of the opposition launched a petition calling for a U-turn.

London councils are part of an agreement to take in a proportion of vulnerable children separated from their families, which for Bromley equates to roughly 47 – or 0.07 per cent of the population.

As the council closed its accounts for the year in May, documents explained that the authority was the first in the capital to remove itself from the rota and “will not receive any further young people”.

In response to the decision, Labour leader Angela Wilkins is petitioning the administration to reverse the call, and is so far being backed by 300 people.

Cllr Wilkins told the LDR service: “We’ve all read heart-wrenching stories of terrified refugees fleeing from war-torn Syria and elsewhere, and just this week have seen horrific images of the bodies of the father and his two-year old child who drowned crossing the Rio Grande whilst fleeing from El Salvador.

MORE Bromley Council to stop taking child asylum seekers unless Government helps with the bill

“The government asked all councils to take care of their share of refugee children – which is not unreasonable given that the UK is a relatively safe and affluent country and these children are alone and at risk of exploitation.

“Along with all London councils, Bromley originally agreed to this and were looking after around 50 children – not a high number for a borough with more than 330,000 residents.”

The shadow leader said the petition, which can be viewed here, will be handed in at a full council meeting on July 15.

Council leader Colin Smith said that while Bromley will continue to honour the 0.07 per cent, further government cuts are on the horizon.

He told the LDR service today: “There is very little to add to what was discussed last month at this stage, other than really to repeat that Bromley has stood and will continue to stand by our historically agreed voluntary commitment to host refugee children totalling 0.07 of the borough’s total child population.

“For anybody to intone or suggest otherwise as the petition does, is at best, and being very generous, disingenuous.

“As one of London’s worst funded boroughs and with further central government cuts to our budget already flagged up and heading our way, we simply cannot continue to fund ever expanding service pressures.

“However, and it really would be quite helpful for local council tax payer’s best interests, were the local Labour group to refrain from their incessant attempts to politically point score and instead fight with us for the borough’s interests for once as well, by supporting our ongoing fight or fairer funding.”

Earlier this year, London Councils reported a “substantial shortfall” between local government funding and the actual cost of caring for asylum seeking children.

Bromley Council currently has 49 asylum seeking children under its responsibility.