‘Nowhere else to go’ claim as tax rise looms
ROSSENDALE’S council leader Alyson Barnes says reluctantly “there wasn’t anywhere else to go” as hefty council tax hikes look set to be approved.
Rossendale BC has recommended a 1.99 per cent rise in its precept, to go with a 4.99pc hike imposed by Lancashire County Council (LCC), and a whopping 7.1pc rise agreed for policing.
Combined, all bills look set to rise by at least £60pa, with ‘average’ Band D family homes paying around £90 more, of which LCC would account for around £70.
Rossendale’s precept hike of 1.99pc - the maximum allowed without a referendum - equates to a borough council charge for Band D for 2021/22 of £285.13, up £5.56.
Coun Barnes said: “We are in a position now where there’s nowhere else to go. We don’t get money from the government anymore in terms of one-off grants.
“It’s entirely down to local residents or businesses or people buying services from the council, whether it’s commercial waste or land searches.”
As part of the Budget, Coun Barnes said Rossendale BC was investing the sum of £1m over a fouryear period in line with its climate change obligations.
She said: “It’s a significant amount of money, and we want it to make a real difference.
“We have got some real issues around traffic congestion, air quality and flooding, and we will use that money to leverage in other monies as well.”
An action plan will look to work with businesses, and identify ideas such as a tree-planting scheme.
Under LCC’s proposals, due to be finalised at a meeting of the full council on Thursday, a 3pc rise will be ringfenced to help fund adult social care costs, via a special precept permitted by the government.
The Lancashire Police and Crime Panel has backed police commissioner Clive Grunshaw’s 7.1pc rise, accounting for a minimum of £10 - £15 for Band D, as the force looks to deliver PM Boris Johnson’s increased police recruitment pledge.
On the police increase, Coun Barnes added: “When I’ve spoken to people in the past people have felt that part of the increase is worthwhile.
“We are going to go back to the old system of policing in Rossendale, which is to be welcomed - and the reason they are going to do that is the ‘Boris bobbies’.
“Because they have got an increase in police numbers as well, they are able to afford a full policing service in Rossendale - which they weren’t [before] in any way.
“We all know that when times are tough, crime goes up, and there’s nothing more frustrating that residents having to contact 101 and not getting the response the need.
“They would always prefer to see people walking around their patch, and keeping an eye on things.”
Papers to be presented to the county council note that “any decisions taken not to increase council tax would increase the financial gap”.
Reserves are forecast to stand at £159.4m by the end of March and are sufficient to bridge any gaps through until 2023/24.
However, the authority intends to seek further savings to put it on a sustainable financial footing.