Nottinghamshire council tax rises labelled 'madness' as people question why they should pay it

Residents have called for the “madness to end” after every Nottinghamshire council announced plans to increase the tax it charges for residents this year. The proposed tax hikes, as reported by the Nottingham Post, are a response to the significant funding challenges faced by local authorities across the country.

For those in Nottingham, the city council is currently planning a 5% rise but this could end up going higher, with the authority having applied to the Government for permission to increase it beyond the current cap. Such permission was recently given to Birmingham City Council with that authority revealing that it will raise taxes by 21% over the next two years.

However, the public’s response to these increases has been anything but happy, with opinions ranging from understanding acceptance to outright anger.

Poll: Should Nottingham City Council have managed its finances better over the last 10 years?

Majoroak points out: “The government has been cutting funding to councils consistently over many years so councils are forced to raise more from council tax. If you want your bins emptied, your services maintained etc then it has to be paid for.

“The economy has been mismanaged and the government is more interested in building a pot to bribe the electorate than investing in much-needed services.

“Government funding to councils is nearly half of what it used to be yet costs have risen enormously. Most of us would struggle if our pay was halved whilst our rent or mortgage increased along with the cost of living.”

However, not all comments lay the blame solely at the feet of the government. Baf60 argues: “Council tax increases of more than 5% are supposed to be subject to local referendum. Sneaking off to the government for permission to bypass this is unacceptable, and the fact that they have already approved Birmingham’s request says all you need to know is what the government thinks of the electorate. We should all refuse to pay more than 5%”

jamiesimon43 questions: “Show me another country in the world where residents are threatened with prison are fines unless you pay this stealth tax I don’t mind fair raises or services you pay for that are true value. But when you have poor road services, bins not emptied, rubbish everywhere and roads dirty I question where is our money going too.

“Why should residents be forced to pay these increases when the money was wasted by councillors? It’s ludicrous but not in the UK, a country where the rules are even how much a sour tastes it leaves. Yes the government are at fault for underfunding but when your council waste millions on failed investments and then asks the residents to pay extra to bail them out it’s not right or fair and I’m not paying it so the council can do one.”

The issue of council tax bands and their fairness also came under scrutiny. TheEqualiz3r says: “All properties over a certain valuation in band H within the same council area pay the same level of tax. There’s been a local tax system for householders for centuries and it has been changed and tinkered with throughout. Labour had oversight of the current system during their administration and chose to largely leave it as it is.”

Freddie079 exclaims: “Outrageous, 21% increase in 2 years because of incompetent elected councillors. When will the madness end?”

While over on our Facebook page, Chris Flood said: “A few things come to mind. How many will be priced out of where they live? With the increase, I’m guessing quite a few will struggle and something has to give. Expect a lot of people to go into debt or become homeless.

“Why should we pay council tax to the council? I reckon we should deduct that part of it and just give it to those who use the money, the council don’t.

“Roads not repaired, rubbish not collected, streets not regularly cleaned and services cut or got rid of. If they’re not doing the basics, why should we pay for it?”

And Tom Cres said: “The lesson here is that it doesn’t matter what you do whilst you’re in power, the taxpayer will pick up the tab long after you’ve run off with the money.”

Do you think that the increase is justified? Let us know what you think in the comments below