Bills set to tumble again
Monday February 22, 2010
Plans to cut council tax for the fourth year in a row are set to be approved at a Budget Council meeting this week (February 24).
Councillors will vote on the three per cent tax cut as part of Hammersmith & Fulham (H&F) Council’s budget proposals for 2010/11.
The council’s budget papers have been the subject of intense scrutiny over recent weeks – with some critics arguing that tax cuts are being paid for by hiking fees and charges – but others are welcoming the proposed tax cut.
Marlon Johnson, 34, an Account Manager who lives on Fulham Palace Road, says: “I seem to pay more council tax than my friends who live in Wandsworth so I think they should definitely be looking at doing something about it. It’s supposed to be a recession after all, so if the council can do their bit to makes things easier for people then I think it’s a great idea.”
H&F Council Leader Stephen Greenhalgh says that fees and charges in the borough are broadly in-line with similar authorities but in H&F services have officially got better – according to the Government’s watchdog – and residents’ satisfaction is at an all time high.
He says: “Some people make the mistake of believing that cutting council tax bills must result in cutting services. It does not. Our savings come from removing waste and bureaucracy. We are slashing our historic debt, introducing competition to services and selling underused assets that we no longer need.”
If the budget is approved the council’s share of a Band D council tax bill will be £811.78 – which is £25 cheaper than last year and £105 less than 2006. If other London boroughs increase their council tax by 2.6 per cent – which has been the average over the past three years – a typical H&F taxpayer will be £524 better off than the average Londoner over four years.
Meanwhile, the Mayor of London is freezing his share of the bill at £309.82 making the overall total £1,121.60p for a Band D property.
Cllr Greenhalgh continues: “We are spending £1.8 million a year to put more police on the streets. We are making our streets cleaner – with 93 per cent meeting Tidy Britain standards. We have improved refuse and recycling collections and parks. We have also opened the first new library in the borough for 40 years at virtually no cost to the taxpayer.”
Budget papers show an extra £2.5 million earmarked for Freedom Passes while council office costs are set to fall by a further £1.2 million a year. The council is also proposing to make an additional £250,000 a year by fining rogue utility companies for over running road works.
The council plans to save £13,297,000 in 2010/11 by getting all departments to cut costs. Measures include:
- Improving staff productivity and cutting redundant posts
- Reducing office costs by a further £1.2. million a year
- Cutting debt even more saving taxpayers £400,000 a year
- Making an additional £250,000 a year by fining rogue utility companies for over running road works
- Generating at least £700,000 a year by selling advertising space
