Lib Dems call for low 2008 council tax increase

3.04.43pm GMT Sun 9th Dec 2007

West Berkshire Liberal Democrats' Finance spokesperson, Councillor David Rendel, is calling for a low 2008/9 council tax increase following the government grant announcement earlier today.

Councillor Rendel commented:

"Having seen the figures I can see no reason for there to be a big increase in council tax bills next year. Once again West Berkshire's Conservatives are lucky to have been given about £5m more than the government's own formula says they need after years in which the opposite was the case."

Councillor Rendel explained what the settlement could mean in practical terms:

"This should mean that the Tories are able to avoid the mean cuts they stuck in last year's budget which saw them cutting the funding for such things as children's playgroups. I will watch with interest to see if they break with tradition and avoid the petty cuts to valuable services of their past budgets."

Nationally, Liberal Democrats oppose the unfair council tax system, which they would abolish and replace with a system based on peoples' ability to pay. Councillor Rendel added:

"The council tax itself is the legacy of the Conservatives. Like the Conservatives, it is past its sell-by-date and it is time for it to go. It is hard to forget that the Council Tax was born out of the Poll Tax fiasco. How can you justify a tax system that takes four times more of the income of the poorest in society than of the richest?"