Greens to force vote to abolish council tax

Green MSPs are to hold a vote in Holyrood in a bid to get the Scottish Government to scrap the council tax system.

The SNP had promised to abolish the charge when it was first elected to power in 2007, with ministers unable to get the legislation through parliament.

Since then the Scottish Government has made some reforms to the charge, which contributes towards council funds.

With the SNP now forming a minority administration, Greens believe they can build on the work of the Commission for Local Tax Reform, which recommended axing the tax in 2015.

Finance Secretary Derek Mackay insisted the Scottish Government was “committed to making local taxation more progressive”, adding he was “open to further dialogue on options for local tax reform”.

The Greens have already told SNP ministers they want changes to be made to the council tax system if they are to support the Government’s budget next year.

Andy Wightman, the party’s local government spokesman, said at the moment “the public are being penalised with an outdated, unfair system under which most households are paying the wrong amount”.

Speaking ahead of a debate in the Scottish Parliament on Wednesday he added: “Successive Scottish Governments have ducked this issue but with a parliament of minorities, we have a chance to build on the agreement struck during the 2015 crossparty Commission on Local Tax Reform that the present council tax system must end.”

Pressure from the Greens resulted in the SNP making changes to income tax in Scotland, Mr Wightman argued, saying this had “resulted in a shift toward a fairer system of income tax, with lower earners paying less and higher earners paying more”.

Andy Wightman and Derek Mackay.