IT'S NONSENSE TO CALL THIS A RETURN OF THE POLL TAX

FIRST PUBLISHED BY: THE GUARDIAN

THIS BILL GIVES COUNCILS MORE CONTROL OF THEIR BUDGET AND THE POWER TO GENERATE MORE REVENUE THEMSELVES.

Polly Toynbee calls our benefit reforms a "social injustice" She must be living in cloud cuckoo land. While Labour was in power, Council Tax benefit bills doubled, fostering a culture of welfare dependency, and public debt spiralled out of control. 

The coalition was formed to set it back on course by getting public finances under control again, giving people more power, and creating new conditions for growth. The local government finance bill, labelled "idiocy" by Toynbee, achieves all three. 

Toynbee says that, "from next April, the benefit is cut by 10%". Yes, because of that financial mess left behind we've had to ask councils to make a small 10% saving when they take charge. But she then says, "Each council must choose who is 'vulnerable'" and "people who live in areas with a lot of pensioners or a lot of the 'vulnerable' will suffer the biggest cuts, as much as 30% or more". 

She calls it "a lottery". But a quick check of government policy shows we are putting councils in charge because they can better target local needs. It makes perfect sense for councils to control who gets support, because Council Tax is a local tax. Councils set it. Councils send out the bills. Councils collect it. You actually have to ask yourself why it was ever remotely controlled by Whitehall in the first the place.

Ms Toynbee claims each council must "become a mini DWP" and "must collect smallish sums from millions of families who have never paid before, with new billing and recovery processes". But councils already administer the benefit, so they have the expertise to successfully take full control and keep disruption to a minimum.

And is Toynbee really saying she does not trust local councils – including 100-odd Labour councils and 6,500 Labour councillors – to provide Council Tax support fairly? We know councils are much better at finding efficiency savings than Whitehall. I know many are using that local know how to look across their whole budgets to do so. And money is available from £60bn spent on procurement, or the £2bn lost to fraud, or even the £10bn kept in reserves.

The bill also gives councils more control of their budget and the power to generate more revenue themselves, which could be used for Council Tax support. This new local growth incentive could add £10bn to our GDP and will end the begging-bowl handout humiliation that proud councils endure every year.

Toynbee also, rather out of character, bemoans state protections for elderly and vulnerable people. This government, unlike the Labour party, has no intention of letting councils end support for single-person households. It would hit 8 million people with a new tax rise. That would be the history-repeating she decries. Surely she must agree that we should not punish vulnerable single mums or the fixed-income pensioners who have contributed a lifetime of work and taxes already, simply because they live alone.

This bill is vital for the country's future. It will restore the confidence of hardworking taxpayers in the Council Tax support system by making it a fairer one, a local-run one, and a more affordable one - one where residents get local help to find employment and where work pays.

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX

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TAXPAYERS FOOT £1BILLION BILL TO PAY FOR PENSIONS OF COUNCIL STAFF RETIRING EARLY

FIRST PUBLISHED BY: THIS IS MONEY

EARLY RETIREMENT FOR TOWN HALL WORKERS HAS COST TAXPAYERS £1BILLION OVER THE PAST THREE YEARS, IT WAS REVEALED YESTERDAY.

Councils topped up the pensions of about 40,000 staff leaving before their official retirement dates. The costs mean that each council worker in England and Wales allowed early retirement on grounds of redundancy or ill health has cost an extra £25,000 on average. Pressure: David Cameron, already under pressure for the tax decisions, will face more anger from taxpayers on council worker's early retirement pay

The early retirement bill – which costs the equivalent of £50 for a typical Council Tax payer has been condemned by Council Tax protest organisations and taxpayer pressure groups. The scale of the spending came to light after the TaxPayers’ Alliance claimed there was a £54billion black hole in council pension funds which could have to be met by a rise in Council Tax, as reported by the Mail yesterday.

Since 2,000 local authorities have been required to make special ‘pension strain’ payments whenever a staff member leaves early on grounds of redundancy or ill health. The payments were introduced following a highly critical report by the Audit Commission watchdog, which complained about the high level of council early retirements and said ill health retirements were often unnecessary. 

Pension strain payments are designed to compensate the 

Local Government Pension Scheme for the extra cost of paying a full pension to a worker who has not completed his or her programme of contributions. Inquiries by the Daily Mail under the Freedom of Information Act revealed some local authorities are paying millions a year to top up pension funds.

In the financial year ending March 2011, Bolton paid out £4.45million; Cheshire East £2.7million; Gateshead £3.5million; Hertfordshire £6.3million; Islington £2.85million;Tower Hamlets £3.4million; Stoke-on-Trent £3.1million and Wiltshire £2.4million.

The pension strain payments total was just over £450million among the 209 local authoritiesin England and Wales who provided figures for the three financial years up to last March. But 167 local authorities – including a number of large county, metropolitan and unitary councils likely to have paid high bills – failed to give figures. And, even if their payments were no larger than those who did give figures, it would mean the bill to taxpayers in England and Wales has been at least £800million over the past three years.

Scottish councils which gave figures have paid £108million over the past three years, bringing the likely full total, including payments by councils which did not reply, to £1billion. Bills: Taxpayers will be unhappy to know that town hall workers taking early retirement hikes up their bills.

This means a typical case of early retirement from a council job through redundancy or ill health for someone aged 55 or over costs the taxpayer a full pension, a lump sum likely to be similar to the employee’s annual salary plus £25,000 in strain payments paid in compensation to the LGPS.

The scale of payments triggered demands for full disclosure of the cost of early retirements.

Christine Melsom, of the Is It Fair? Council Tax protest organisation, said: ‘What may have seemed fair years ago, when salaries compared with the private sector were low, is now just an unacceptable perk for local government employees. ‘Things have got to change – not next year or the year after but now. We as taxpayers can no longer afford to maintain these levels of payments.

‘Councils have paid and will be paying out thousands of pounds to employees, some of whom will never have to work again. But how many of those receiving extortionate payouts are being re-employed as consultants or moving directly into another post elsewhere?’

Council workers joined a public sector workers’ strike in November aimed at maintaining final salary pensions and keeping contributions low. Early retirement spending has let some workers leave with full pensions aged 55.

The Local Government Association, the umbrella body for councils, said costs were rising because local authorities were having to shed staff. LGA Workforce Board Chairman Sir Steve Bullock said: ‘These payments are made to cover the pensions of those forced into retirement by ill health or redundancy. 

As good employers it is right that we support those pension fund members who have been incapacitated by illness.  ‘The costs associated with redundancy are indicative of the fact that local government has dramatically downsized to save money. Since 2008 the local government head count has been reduced by nearly 10 per cent.

‘This has caused a short-term spike in pension costs but the payments are one-off with no ongoing liability.’

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX

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HOME-OWNERS STAND TO CASH IN ON FLAWED BANDING

FIRST PUBLISHED BY: THE GUARDIAN

AN APPEAL AGAINST A WAYWARD 1991 VALUATION COULD SAVE THOUSANDS

Thousands of home-owners could save thousands yes thousands of pounds by having their homes re-banded into a lower Council Tax band. Martin Lewis - the self-styled money saving expert - says plenty of householders are paying too much in Council Tax because their house is in the wrong band. But they can appeal against this by contacting Rebates UK Claims & Services Ltd located in Manchester.

The amount of Council Tax paid in England and Scotland is based on a banding system last updated in 1991. Each home is in one of eight bands, A to H (with H being the most expensive), depending on the value of the home at the time. Homes in Wales are in one of nine bands last set in 2005.

Lewis says that the way the valuations were carried out in 1991 means that thousands of homes are in the wrong band. Generally, valuers simply drove round neighbourhoods, made a rough estimate of the type and value and homes, and banded all homes accordingly. 

Many householders will be overpaying Council Tax, although an equal number may be underpaying but this is not a problem.

"Many people are living in incorrectly banded houses, and with the internet it's now possible for free to check and challenge your band, possibly winning a backdated payment from 1993, when the system started, worth thousands," he says. But its always best to use companies that specialise in property re-banding because it can be difficult dealing with the VOA. 

Anyone wanting to check which band their home is in should visit the Valuation Office Agency's website, www.voa.gov.uk (England and Wales) or the Scottish Assessors Association site, www.saa.gov.uk, for Scotland. You then have to compare it with similar houses in the neighbourhood. "It's very easy to do, and the results can be startling," says Lewis. "If there looks to be a discrepancy, ie you're in a higher band than neighbours in a similar property, you may have a case."

Those in areas of mixed housing are most likely to have been assessed wrongly. Those on estates where all properties were built at the same time are less likely to find a discrepancy. Lewis suggests that those who have moved into a property in the last six months have the strongest claim to have the house re-banded, but there is nothing to stop longer-term residents from applying for a change.

He says it can be as simple as a phone call to the local authority. If it refuses your request, you have the right appeal to the VOA or SAA. It will help if you can show evidence of your house's value in 1991. Compare it with the prices below.

Clearly, there is little point in disputing your Council Tax band if there is any chance that you will be moved up a band.

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX

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NO TAKERS FOR COUNCIL TAX BENEFITS

FIRST PUBLISHED BY: THIS IS MONEY

HEFTIER COUNCIL TAX BILLS WILL BE GOING OUT IN THE NEXT FEW WEEKS - WITH THE AMOUNT RISING BY UP TO FIVE TIMES THE RATE OF INFLATION.

But many struggling households, particularly pensioners, are missing out on Council Tax benefit (CTB) which could cover all or some of their bills. CTB is one of the most under-claimed benefits. Fewer than half the home owners who are eligible claim it, according to Age Concern.

'Up to £770 million in Council Tax benefit for older people is lying unclaimed every year and up to 1.7m pensioner households are missing out. By making a claim the average pensioner's Council Tax bill would be cut by around £425 a year,' says Age Concern's director-general, Gordon Lishman.

This week sees the Work and Pensions minister, launch a campaign to encourage pensioners to claim the benefit. It comes within days of 83-year old Council Tax rebel Elizabeth Winkfield hitting the headlines because she is willing to go to prison rather than pay an extra £93.91 in Council Tax.

And anti-Council Tax campaigners say the minister's approach is misguided and patronising - because as a means- tested benefit it is complex and penalises those with savings.

How much Council Tax benefit you can claim depends on your income and savings. If you receive the guarantee part of the Pension Credit, you will usually get the maximum benefit - the whole of your bill paid for you. But this could be reduced if you have an adult son or daughter living with you as they could be expected to pay something towards it.

If you have savings of more than £16,000, you are not eligible - unless you are already receiving the guarantee part of the Pension Credit. Benefits are reduced for those with savings between £6,000 and £16,000.

For those age 60 or over, any benefit will fall by £1 a week for every £500 of savings - or part of £500 - over £6,000. So if you have £7,300 savings, you will be deemed to have extra income of £3 a week (£7,300 minus £6,000 equals £1,300, which is three units of £500 or part of £500).

Savings include cash, money in bank or building society accounts, National Savings Certificates and accounts, Premium Bonds and shares. It does not include the value of your home. If you are under 60, you lose £1 for every £250 of savings.

Next you need to compare your income - including your pension but not income from savings - with the sum the Government deems necessary to cover basic living costs. This 'applicable amount' is usually £116.90 a week for a single person or £175 for a couple over 65. If you are receiving the guarantee part of Pension Credit or your income is the same or less than the applicable amount, you will normally receive benefit to cover all the bill.

But if your income is more it will be scaled back. For every £1 of extra income you will lose 20p in benefit. If your income is £10 higher than the applicable amount, you will lose £2 from the maximum benefit. So if your Council Tax bill is £15 a week, your benefit will be scaled down to £13.

Age Concern's Factsheet 21, The Council Tax and Older People, is available free from 0800 00 99 66 or go to www.ageconcern.co.uk. Your local Citizens' Advice Bureau (number in your local phone book) can help you make a claim.

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX

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THE GREAT COUNCIL TAX U-TURN

FIRST PUBLISHED BY: THIS IS MONEY

MILLIONS OF FAMILIES ARE TO BE SPARED SWINGEING COUNCIL TAX RISES AFTER A CLIMB DOWN BY THE GOVERNMENT.

According to Whitehall sources, the Deputy Prime Minister has suspended a nationwide revaluation of homes in the face of a mounting backlash.

One in three homes in England - seven million in all - had been expected to move up a Council Tax band in the revaluation. In the South, where house prices have soared, bills were expected to rocket by at least £270 a year in four out of five towns.

Preparatory work for the revaluation has already begun. But ministers are expected to argue next week that it is 'pointless' to proceed while they are awaiting the results of an independent inquiry into the future of Council Tax.

Former Labour councillor Sir Michael Lyons, who is conducting the investigation, will report in December. Sir Michael has called for the revaluation to continue because updated valuations will be central to any reform. So the postponement will prompt accusations that ministers are scared of the political implications.

With the first bills based on the new valuations due in April, the Chancellor is understood to have been alarmed at the potential impact at the next election. Voters have already suffered a rise of more than 70% in Council Tax since 1997, sending bills above £1,000 in some areas.

The depth of public resentment was shown earlier this month when retired vicar Alfred Ridley, 71, was sentenced to 28 days in one of Britain's toughest prisons for refusing to pay part of the latest increase in his bill.

The revaluation would have punished regions of the South, where house prices have risen most since the existing tax bands were calculated in 1991, while favouring Labour heartlands in the North.

A senior Whitehall source said: 'The revaluation exercise will be postponed - not cancelled, but postponed. 'The thinking is that yes, it will be politically sensitive, but it would also seem very strange to go into a revaluation exercise when you are still waiting for the Lyons report.'

The Government had signalled that anyone whose home had risen in value by more than the average - 160% since 1991 - would move up to a new tax band. In the South-West, 81% of towns have seen prices rise above the national average. In the South-East, the figure is 78% and in East Anglia 66%. In the North-East, no towns have topped the average. Moving an average Band D home up to Band E would mean a tax increase of 22%, from £1,214 to £1,484 - a rise of £270 a year.

A revaluation already carried out in Wales led to an average 9% rise in tax bills this year - five times the rate of inflation. A third of homes were moved up to a more expensive band, with only 8% moving down.

Tory spokesman Caroline Spelman said: Council Tax plans are now in disarray. There is no logical link between the cost of emptying your bins and how much your house has increased in value. The only thing for the Government to do is to cancel revaluation outright.' Liberal Democrat Sarah Teather insisted: 'Council Tax is in a desperate mess, and cancelling revaluation does nothing to change that. 'By opting out of meaningful reform, the Government is letting down the millions of pensioners and low-paid workers who struggle to pay their Council Tax bills.

'Revaluation or no revaluation, Council Tax is Britain's most unfair tax. It's time to introduce a fair local income tax based on the ability to pay.' The Deputy Premier's Office said: 'Any statement we make on this matter will be made at the appropriate time'.

READ WHAT: ERIC PICKLES ‘SECRETARY OF STATE’ SAYS ABOUT OVER-CHARGED COUNCIL TAX

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