Daniel Zeichner, MP for Cambridge, has responded to yesterday’s Local Government announcement by Communities Secretary Sajid Javid MP with criticism after local authorities were told that they can increase spending to tackle mounting pressures on public services, without additional funding from central government. 

Mr Javid announced that local authorities will be able to increase core council tax rates by an additional 1% from April 2018 to 2.99% without being required to hold a local referendum. In addition to this, local authorities can also increase council tax bills by a further 3% in order to direct additional funding to social care provisions. 

Daniel Zeichner, MP for Cambridge said in response to the announcement: “with no additional money in the Budget last month to tackle the crisis in social care, and no money in this settlement to pay for a much-needed increase in public-sector pay, the Government is passing the buck and leaving Councils in the lurch.

Council tax will inevitably have to rise and householders will rightly be left wondering why the Government makes them pay more while at the same time giving tax breaks to the already super-rich.

This announcement is not the Merry Christmas message that Councils would have been hoping for.”