It was 1993 when council tax became the method of how households pay towards local government services and policing. A case can be made for updating how local government is financed, including updating from the 1991 banding valuations, but I am concerned that the Labour government are going to make a dog’s breakfast of it and introduce much unfairness into the system.
Of concern is that Labour’s Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, did not rule out ending the 25% council tax discount for single-adult households, when asked about it in parliament. I don’t rate her as being particularly competent, so it is possible she didn’t answer correctly, but as I write, she hasn’t issued any correction or clarification, which makes me fear that it very much is an option being considered.
Nationally, there are 8.4 million people who live in single-adult households. About 4 million of these are pensioners, many of whom are widows or widowers. On average across West Sussex, the 25% discount is worth roughly £500 for a Band-D property, compared with properties of two or more adults. Clearly, households with only one adult use less local government services than those with two or more, so it’s basic fairness that these households pay less.
It could be argued the single-adult discount should be more than 25%, but the discount being 25% is long established. What would be an absolute travesty is removing the single-person discount altogether, meaning that for example, an elderly widowed pensioner on a basic state pension, could be paying the same as a household next door with two or more working people on good salaries.
If Labour are now targeting single people in their budget next month, it risks being a triple whammy for many pensioners, who are still reeling from being told they won’t be receiving their winter fuel allowance. October is when energy costs rise by 10%, just as the days are getting shorter and the cooler weather arrives. All single people have greater challenges running their household and I strongly urge the Labour government not to remove their 25% council tax discount.
Councillor Duncan Crow, Leader of Crawley Borough Council Conservative Group
11th September 2024
