Council tax has become the ultimate con

Failing public services in the face of rising costs all point to one conclusion

The street I live on is filthy. This is despite my local council apparently spending £25m on street cleaning and rubbish and recycling collections.
This year my council tax bill is increasing by 5.8pc. My two-bedroom flat now costs £2,010.57 per year. The figure surprised me. Given I pay by direct debit, I don’t think I’d realised the total amount I was paying per year.
But then the “Klarna-isation” tactics of my local council may be to blame – unbeknownst to me, at some point they moved my usual 10 monthly payments to 12, meaning I hadn’t clocked how much the bills had increased.
The letter from the leader of the council informs me: “Since 2010, the Government has cut our core funding by 48pc in real terms (adjusted for inflation) … [and] expects us to increase council tax to bring in much-needed money.”
What riled me is since 2015/2016 my council tax bill has in fact soared by 51pc. Admittedly, this was just before the introduction of the adult social care precept which has added another 2pc year on year, but at a time when councils are bemoaning how much extra they have to pay for this social care, I’m confused where this extra “precept” money has gone?
Especially when research by the Local Government Information Unit reveals 16pc of councils will cut adult social care.
Maladministration is my hypothesis. Lack of accountability for poor decisions appears rife and the bedrock of culture in local councils.
That’s the only explanation I can find for why the people of Birmingham are being forced to put up with a 21pc increase over the next two years.
It was their council who screwed up the IT system and needed to settle equal pay claims that forced them into bankruptcy.
Yet it will be the people of Birmingham who suffer the price hikes while at the same time face cuts to social care, bin collections and libraries.
The people of Thurrock also have to pick up the tab for their council’s failed investment in solar farms to the tune of an 8pc increase, while Nottingham residents have to cover their blundering council’s mistakes for running an energy company, Robin Hood Energy, that went bust.
Of the 136 councils that have revealed their plans for the new financial year, 129 are hitting tax-payers with a 4.99pc hike (the most they can charge without triggering a referendum).
That’s 95pc of all councils. And yet they still plan to cut services.
But perhaps what’s more terrifying is amid this time of escalating cost burden on taxpayers, half of councils (51pc) have warned of effective bankruptcy in five years, with 9pc saying they’re likely to issue a section 114 notice within the next financial year.
It feels apocalyptic when you consider the massively increasing costs of homelessness. Councils in London are spending £90m per month on temporary accommodation for homeless people – up by almost 40pc since last year.
These are big numbers. They’re headline-grabbing. But, what of the tax by stealth which has now become normalised and unquestioned?
The charge for green waste is a prime example. Councils used to collect green waste (or garden waste) as part of the council tax charge, but at some point, having “green waste” (which I thought was a good thing) became a privilege and something we had to pay extra for.
What’s worrying is that given the average annual charge for garden waste removal is £150 to 200 per year (plus an initial upfront subscription), that’s a whopping 8 to 10pc extra on the average band D council tax bill.
The problem is because council tax is a compulsory charge, it has become a silent enemy. We know we have to pay it, there is no choice.
But increasingly we’re paying more for less, and getting charged extra for additions. There is no clear pricing model.
Like a budget airline carrier, councils are now charging expensive add-ons for the most basic of necessities, and hoodwinking us into the idea they are not charging anymore than the cap of 4.99pc.
This appears to be the case for Somerset Council who last year declared a “financial emergency” and have increased their council tax by a total of 13.6pc.
The itemised bill sets out the increased costs for Somerset Council (3pc), Adult Social Care Precept (2pc), Avon and Somerset Police and Crime Commissioner (4.9pc), Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Authority (3pc) and Taunton Town Council (172.9pc).
In addition to the hike, residents will face the council considering severe reductions to public services. This itemisation of “add-ons” is a worrying trend which more councils may start to implement.
It doesn’t need much imagination to realise next year the cost of libraries, parks and street cleaning could be split out to boost their ailing budgets.
The only flickering bright spark on the horizon is perhaps learning from those minority of councils who have not introduced inflation-busting increases and understanding what they have done.
Hartlepool Borough Council increased their core council tax by just 0.99pc, plus the 2pc rise in the adult social care precept, while Rotherham Council increased their basic council tax by 1.5pc, with an additional 2pc earmarked for adult social care.
We are facing challenging times and we need to ask challenging questions. We need to ask: is it right that super-homes don’t have super-bands (beyond H)?
We need to demand more accountability and transparency from our councils. And lastly, we need to question if this council tax system even works.