Hot topic: council tax news
Council agrees biggest tax cut in Britain for the second year running
Hammersmith and Fulham Council has agreed a three per cent cut in council tax bills this year. It is the only council in the country to cut tax by three per cent for two years running.
Council leader Stephen Greenhalgh says: “Too many families are being crippled by high bills. Budgets are being squeezed from all directions, with high interest rates and prices on the rise. We simply do not believe people can afford to pay any more."
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Congratulations on reducing the borough's council tax last year and your plans for similar action this year. May I suggest you give great publicity to your achievement in order that councils all over the country may be inspired to do the same?
From Ronald Phillips on 15/11/07
I am very pleased to hear about the council tax cut, as I am struggling to pay my council tax (more than £1,200 a year), and my little family (wife and two kids) depend only on my wage. Thanks for this great news.
Thanks for backing the tax cut. As a nurse, whose current suggested pay rise this year is going to be 2% below inflation, it's a great help.
Council tax is too high, but I’m glad things are going in the right direction.
This cut is excellent news. Council tax always goes up and it’s about time it went down. I think Ken Livingstone should follow the council’s lead. There’s a lot of waste that should be cut.
I think this is a good thing. I’m a pensioner so this will help quite a bit. I pay a lot of council tax, over £900, which can be difficult. It makes my shopping budget really tight.
It’s a good thing that they are cutting the waste that is prevalent in the council. The fact that Ken Livingstone is increasing tax is a sore point with me. Why should I pay for the Olympics I’m 91 and might not even be around when they happen!
Council tax is way too high. I’ve got children and this cut will make family budgeting a little bit easier.
You end up paying so many bills that it can be a bit of a struggle. It’s brilliant that the council are cutting back on waste: like those political advisors they got rid of.
These cuts are fine but we need to know if services will be cut too. It’s important that the council maintain things that help the elderly and most needy.
I am so pleased to see a reduction in our council tax. Hopefully, this will send a message out regarding wastage within our local services and lead to a real value for money policy.
I am not convinced that cutting council tax is anything to be proud of. I believe that council tax pays for vital services in our local area, and that cuts in tax will mean cuts in those services. I am concerned about proposed cuts in the street-cleaning budget, the proposed sacking of home helps, and the proposed stop on building new affordable rented homes. I am not impressed by a council who claims that its main benefit is making people richer, by cutting taxes, at the expense of others who need the money more, by cutting public services. This reminds me of the Tory party of old, and I'd like to see a little more creativity and concern for others in your approach.
I would rather have seen a 0% increase than a cut. Surely cutting council tax rates means a cut in services and I would rather we ensure we provide adequate or increased services to the community (especially those services which affect the less well-off sectors of the borough) than take a cut. Alternatively, why not increase the council tax by 3% and then give increased discounts to pensioners and low-income households (or is this too radical?).
I think it's excellent news the council tax will be cut - about time too. The rest of London should follow the lead taken by H&F, which shows you can deliver high quality public services without costing the earth, by eliminating waste and making services more cost efficient. Hopefully this will be the start of a downward trend for many years to come!
There can be no doubt a reduction in tax is always welcome, but it is often a cheap way to increase popularity. I request news of the services that have been cut or curtailed in order to achieve this cut. I understand that the home-help scheme for the elderly has been cut. Is this true? If so, I believe it would be more honest to ask residents if they wish to have this crucial service for our most vulnerable neighbours cut, or have a few quid shaved off their council tax bills.
Surely a huge amount could be achieved with this 3% and voters would be much more grateful if the money could go towards: 1. Less potholes (huge danger to bikers and cyclists); 2. More CCTV in locations subjected to repeated acts of vandalism or graffiti; 3. Better street lighting to make people feel safer when they venture out after dark; 4. A general makeover - especially for certain areas of Hammersmith and Shepherd's Bush which are becoming more and more depressive even just to transit; 5. Creation of local neighbourhoods to compete with each other on a similar basis as the best kept village competitions in rural England. Each year a meaningful award could be presented to the residents of the winning community - not just a piece of paper to put in a frame. Dozens of ideas come to mind. I am sure that the 3% could be used to work wonders and help to make residents feel proud to live in what could be the cleanest, brightest and most inviting part of inner London. The 3% reduction will end up being squandered and forgotten by many of those who receive it (the majority of private tenants won't get a farthing anyway) but an improvement in EVERY resident's quality of life is what could really make a difference. The only people to benefit substantially, from a 3% reduction in Council Tax, will be the already extremely wealthy, but then perhaps that is your intention. Over a century ago many of those blessed with great wealth were extremely philanthropic e.g. The Cadbury and Rowntree families. Sadly, for so many of us, that great generosity has been replaced by that all-devouring beast called GREED. Ergo: Your well-intentioned philanthropy may well end up being invested in property abroad or in the casinos of London. What a great pity.
The 3% cut is good news, but it should be 30%, as we are governed by Brussels, by Westminster, by the Mayor's office and by Hammersmith Town Hall. Maybe we could add another layer or two of government? The end result of all this 'governance' is a reduced quality of life, an increase in class hatred and class issues as so many crucial political points are not even mentioned let alone put on an agenda. This is because we have a right-wing ruling party and an even more right-wing opposition party and right-wing local parties, greed and self-interest are established as the salient virtues for children to aspire towards, the cost of living in Londonis disgusting and no party or politician has lifted a finger to address the profiteering and exploitation in housing (private rent and otherwise). Why not place a rent cap on private rentals as there is on Housing Benefit payments? Why not ditch the home ownership frenzy and invest in sound-proofing the insufferably inadequate partitions in converted flats where tens of thousands of Hammersmith and Fulham residents must listen to the sounds of their neighbours snoring, making love, arguing etc? Why not acknowledge the housing need, unemployment and relative poverty in the borough instead of issuing self-aggrandising statements that are in effect meaningless? Why? Because you do not care. You do not care what happens to poor people or people left behind by modern consumerism's brave march forward. You don't care from the depths of your very being but you say you do. You don't care because deep down you resent the poor and marginalised. Know the truth and the truth shall set you free. The poor will always be with us but that doesn't mean they have to live in poor housing and have to listen to canting nonsense about how they should better themselves in life and become as anti-social, as greedy and as morally bankrupt as those who manage to make it to the suburbs ... it's not a revolution we need, just a touch of sanity would be a beginning.
This is fantastic achievement and one of which the council should be proud as: a) it is a real step in the right direction in terms of charging people more appropriately for the services they receive; and b) shows that the council is delivering on its election promises. I hope that this trend continues, as there are still substantial gains to be made, but this is an achievement which should be recognised and is genuinely appreciated by many.
I am delighted to hear my council tax bill may be cut. Thank you.
