First Published by: THETAXPAYERS ALLIANCE
THE TAXPAYERS’ ALLIANCE HAS CRITICISED SURREY COUNTY COUNCIL FOR PLOUGHING AHEAD WITH A COUNCIL TAX INCREASE.
Councilors voted through the decision to
increase its portion of the CouncilTax by 2.99 per cent at a meeting on Tuesday. All the Conservatives
present voted for the increase, while all the Liberal Democrats voted
against.
Resident Association members and
independent councilors voted no to a rise or abstained. The Taxpayers’
Alliance hit back at the authority after the vote and suggested areas where
savings could be made in order to keep Council Tax down, which has
increased by 72 per cent over the past 10 years.
They included looking at pay based on the
fact Surrey’s chief executive received a total remuneration of £253,133 in
2010/11 – more than the Prime Minister – and councillor allowances for the same
time period cost taxpayers £1,582,000.
Matthew Sinclair, director of the TaxPayers’
Alliance, said: “The council have let people in Surrey down by imposing a big
hike in Council Tax on
residents, so many of who already struggle to pay. “Over the past 10 years
there has already been a drastic increase in Council Tax bills and, with so many
other pressures on their finances, this is the last thing families in the
county need.
“Surrey needs to follow the example of
other local authorities who have shown it is possible to combine quality
services with lower bills, and deliver much better value for money.”
The Government offered all councils a
one-off grant of 2.5 per cent for 2012/13 if they froze Council Tax for another year. But
Surrey declined the grant on the grounds it was a short-term gain for long-term
pain and accepting it would lead to a financial black hole – a £70m shortfall
over five years Leader of the council Councilor David Hodge said: “For many
other councils in the country, the Government offer is a good one.
“But after exhaustive analysis, my cabinet
and I believe that this one-off CouncilTax grant is not in the medium to long-term interest of Surrey
residents. “We must do what is right for the residents of Surrey over the
long-term and not accept short-term assistance that will imperil our financial
stability in years to come.
“While the rest of the country may suffer
hard times in the coming years if the economy continues to stagnate, I can
assure everyone that the whole team at Surrey County Council is working to
achieve the best of times for the residents of Surrey.”
No comments:
Post a Comment
I support Council Tax Rebates in assisting home owners and tenants in getting a rebate on their over-paid Council Tax.