Council tax is now highest in county
Charges go up by almost five per cent
PEOPLE living in Stockport are paying more council tax than anywhere else in Greater Manchester, it has been revealed.
The latest changes to council tax will see people in the borough paying around five per cent more than they did in 2016/17, starting from this week.
This means the average council tax for a band D property occupied by two adults will come to £1,744 in Stockport – up from £1,666 in the last financial year.
Council leader Alex Ganotis says the high rate is due to the fact that the borough has been historically underfunded by central government and that this stretches back long before austerity measures began in 2010.
PEOPLE living in Stockport will soon be paying more council tax than anywhere else in Greater Manchester, it has been revealed.
The latest changes to council tax charges will see people across the area paying around five per cent more than they did in 2016/17, starting from next week.
This means the average council tax for a band D property occupied by two adults will come to £1,744 in Stockport – up from £1,666 in the last financial year.
The next highest in Greater Manchester is Oldham at £1,729 and the lowest is affluent Trafford at £1,407, which is one of the lowest in the whole country.
The average across England is £1,591 – £153 less than in Stockport, and in Manchester it is £1,502.
It includes adult social care, parish precepts, and fire and police precepts.
Council tax hikes have been put in place across most of the country, largely in order to combat cuts to central government funding.
Like many councils, Stockport voted to increase council tax by the maximum 4.99 per cent.
Stockport Council leader Alex Ganotis says the high rate is due to the fact that the borough has been historically underfunded by central government and that this stretches back long before austerity came in 2010.
He said: “This means Stockport is much more reliant on council tax income than comparable councils in order to fund its services.
“In addition – and because of this – we are a relatively low spending authority compared to many of our neighbours and have been for many years.”
Councillor Iain Roberts, leader of the Liberal Democrat group, which had overall control over the council up until the last elections, said: “Under the Liberal Democrats Stockport was one of the most efficient, lowest-spending councils in Greater Manchester and between 2010 and 2016 we cut council tax in real terms.
“Stockport always received a poor grant from central government, meaning that local taxpayers have had to shoulder more of the burden than in many other places.
“The Lib Dems have long argued for fairer funding and will continue to make that case.”
●AVERAGE council tax for band D properties shared by two people in 2017/18: Bolton - £1,612 Bury - £1,644 Manchester - £1,502 Oldham - £1,729 Rochdale - £1,671 Salford - £1,667 Stockport - £1,744 Tameside - £1,569 Trafford - £1,407 Wigan - £1,476 England - £1,591