Minister to quiz council on tax hike (From Tewkesbury Admag)

Minister to quiz council on tax hike

A DELEGATION from West Oxfordshire District Council, which has one of the lowest council tax charges in the country, was summoned to a meeting in Whitehall last week to discuss why the council wants a 33per cent tax hike.

Along with other councils looking for a large percentage rise in council tax, leaders from the district, which includes Chipping Norton, were asked to explain the increase to local government minister Nick Raynsford.

If councillors approve the 33 per cent increases, band D council tax will rise by £20 from £60 to £80. The level of council tax is still much lower than other councils in the area, including Cotswold District Council which has agreed a band D tax rate of £121, a 3.5 per cent increase.

After the meeting in Whitehall last Wednesday, council leader Barry Norton said: "We had a constructive dialogue with the Minister and explained the council's financial position. We explained that the council now appeared to be being punished for having such a low tax, but clearly we will have to bear in mind what the Minister has said.

"The Minister acknowledged that West Oxfordshire was managing its finances well, but was concerned that the public would see only the percentage increase figure. The reason our Council Tax is rising is because of imposed decisions by Government which are unfunded, such as increases in recycling.

"It's ridiculous the Government seeks to intervene in our affairs when we are one of the lowest charging councils in the country. We simply want to go on providing good services at the lowest possible cost. If the Government wants to keep the Council Tax down it should stop imposing more and more bureaucracy on local councils."

The district's cabinet was due to consider the budget and council tax for the next financial year at its meeting yesterday. It will then make its final recommendations to full council, which meets next Wednesday.