Council tax bills set to double for second home owners

COUNCILS in tourist hotspots are preparing to double the tax paid by second-home owners as they try to plug holes in their budgets.

Authorities in Devon, Cornwall, Norfolk, the Lake District and Yorkshire are among those planning to increase the council tax paid by people who do not live in the area permanently as soon as new legislation enabling the raid is passed by the Government, The Daily Telegraph can reveal.

It will come on top of the highest council tax rates on record after Jeremy Hunt, the Chancellor, used the Autumn Statement to give authorities the green light to increase bills by up to 5 per cent to help fund social care.

The Office for Budget Responsibility said the move will push average council tax bills in many areas above £2,000 for the first time. For second home owners, those record bills could double from April 1 2024 if the Government’s Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill receives royal assent.

A senior government source said: “Local people are being shut out of get- ting homes in their own communities. The point of levelling up is all about empowering communities to make decisions which benefit their area, so it is right that councils have this power.”

Councils in Wales have already raised taxes after the Labour-led Government introduced new rules which mean they can charge up to 300 per cent council tax and closed loopholes allowing shortterm holiday lets to avoid second home taxes.

The Labour Party has also promised a further crackdown if it comes to power. Lisa Nandy, the shadow levelling-up secretary, said they are already working with councils on “new rules around second homes”.

It comes as a poll revealed that the Tories are now more associated with high taxes than Labour.

Conducted the day before the Autumn Statement by Redfield & Wilton Strategies, the exclusive poll for The Telegraph found 42 per cent of people now associate the Tories with high taxes, compared with 17 per cent for Labour. Meanwhile, 51 per cent of people said they now most associated the Conservative Party with raising taxes and 14 per cent said they think of the Tories as having a reputation for lowering taxes.

Yesterday, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) said the Chancellor had ushered in a “new era of higher taxation, higher spending and a bigger state”.

Paul Johnson, the director of the think tank, said: “Higher taxes look to be here to stay.”

This week, councils in both North Yorkshire and North Norfolk, which have some of the highest numbers of second homes, voted to introduce the new council tax levy as soon as possible.

Torridge district council in Devon has also voted in favour of introducing the increase. It is understood that at a recent revenue meeting for authorities across the county the “consensus” was that most would implement the rise.

Many councils will discuss the proposals in the coming weeks and decisions must be made by the end of March if they want to charge extra at the first possible opportunity.

Jon Triggs, director of resources and deputy chief executive at North Devon district council, where officials are preparing a report recommending adopting the proposals, said extra revenue was needed as councils struggle to balance the books.

“There is unprecedented continued pressure on budgets, and raising funds through council tax and fees and charges is the only way we can bridge those gaps, unless we receive any further funding from central Government, which is not forthcoming,” he said.

Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale in Cumbria, said that along with his local

authority “we are very clear we will make use of anything that the Government will allow us to do”.

The Telegraph can also reveal that many councils have been forcing second homeowners to declare where they normally live, leading to fears the information could be used as part of the plans to increase taxes.

Around 250 authorities made it compulsory for people to give their main addresses for voting registration, effectively requiring them to declare that they have a second home.

Filling in the forms as part of the electoral canvas is mandatory. However, providing such details is not required by law. Despite this, council websites have been preventing homeowners from completing the form without submitting these details.

David Davis, the Tory MP, said: “Councils should not be trying to force residents to hand over personal data when they are not legally obliged to.”

The Electoral Commission was not aware councils were requiring address information on the household response. com website before being alerted by The Telegraph. A spokesman said they have “highlighted” that this is not legally required and have “recommended” that the forms are changed.