Belfast City Council has tonight announced its updated district rates tariffs.
At a meeting of council members, Northern Ireland's biggest local authority agreed an increase in the district rate for 2023/24 of 7.99%. It means retail and homes across the city will be paying even more every month.
In real terms it means average monthly increases of
- £2.05 for a terraced property
- £3.13 for a 3-bed semi-detached property
- £6.97 for a 4-bed detached property
- £1.98 for an apartment
- £51.44 for an office property, and
- £42.14 for a retail property
Chair of Belfast City Council ’s Strategic Policy and Resources Committee Emmett McDonough-Brown said: “For seven years we were able to keep the rates increase below 3% which was a significant achievement but none of us, including Council, is exempt from the impact of the cost-of-living crisis and the rising costs of energy and services.
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"As councillors, it’s important that we strike a balance between supporting our ratepayers and residents, while also looking after the needs of our own staff as they too are impacted by the current economic times.
“And while we are unfortunately seeing an increase in rates this year, I am pleased that we have been able to keep it below the current rate of inflation.
"This increase in rates will allow us to further invest in a number of key services which we know are priorities for our residents and business community.
“Any increase in bills is never a good news story for households, particularly in the current climate; but I want to reassure our ratepayers that we will continue to scrutinise council spend and remain committed to making further efficiency savings wherever possible, while also delivering on our community plan for the city and prioritising action on core council services and facilities, climate, and digital innovation.”
Sinn Fein councillor Ciaran Beattie said: “The DUP’s refusal to form an Executive has left local councils with much reduced government support for rates and left public services at the mercy of savage Tory budget cuts from London.
“Belfast City Council, like all local authorities here, is facing significant financial pressures because of years of Tory austerity cuts, Brexit, soaring energy costs and the cost-of-living crisis.
“Our priority has been to maintain and deliver fair pay rises for council workers, protect jobs and ensure that economic investment and work to transform and regenerate Belfast can continue.”
People Before Profit had earlier opposed an 8% hike in the rates. Cllr Fiona Ferguson said: “The cost-of-living crisis is far from over. Many thousands of people in Belfast are struggling with the price of bills, striking for basic pay offers, turning to food banks. In these circumstances, it is totally unjustifiable to punish people further by hiking the rates.
“This rates hike was completely avoidable. We knew the cost of inflation was coming yet the Stormont Executive and the Tories failed to bail out councils, long before the institutions collapsed.
“For years they have refused to lift the rates cap so wealthier people could pay more rates, protecting working-class people. They refused to make big businesses pay full rates for properties lying vacant, and allowed wealthy universities to pay no rates at all.
“Now Sinn Féin, the DUP and the Alliance party tell us that ordinary people must pay a whopping 8% more. We do not accept this and our councillors stood up to oppose it."
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