THE SNP have been urged to stick to their council tax reform timetable – as the clock runs down on replacing the “outdated” levy.
Finance Secretary Shona Robison has been urged to keep her pledge to unveil reforms to the controversial tax before the next Holyrood election.
But there is concern that a group including ministers and local government representatives tasked with coming up with alternatives could fail to grasp the scale of the challenge.
Greens co-leader Lorna Slater (below) said: “As part of the last Budget the Scottish Government committed to a timetable of reform that would see reforms published ahead of the next election.
“They must ensure that they stick to that timeline and that we finally get rid of this outdated tax.”
The Scottish Government’s Joint Working Group on Council Tax met last Thursday and before that in April this year.
Last week’s meeting was the first of John Swinney’s time as First Minister and Cosla spokesperson Katie Hagmann told the Scotsman earlier this month that the reason for the gap between meetings was as a result of the turbulence in the Scottish Government since the resignation of Nicola Sturgeon (below).
She said that despite the group having been formed in 2022, it was “not at the point of making any announcements” on its proposals for reforming council tax, adding: “That work has slowed down due to a change of ministerial positions, and that is the reality that we are working with.”
Slater told The National that council tax “badly” needed to be replaced.
She said: “Council tax is a fundamentally unfair and broken system that disproportionately hurts people on low incomes and leaves local authorities struggling to pay for essential services. It is unfit for purpose and badly needs to be replaced.”
Slater added: “Beyond that, we need to build on the progress delivered by the Scottish Greens and ensure that councils have the powers they need to raise funds and deliver change in their communities, including a cruise ship levy and the power to double council tax for second and holiday homes.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “Ministers are invested in delivering fairer, more inclusive and fiscally sustainable forms of local taxation.
“The Scottish Government’s Joint Working Group with Cosla on council tax reform has explored a broad range of measures with a core aim of providing fairness to the system.
“As part of this we have delivered changes to the council tax treatment of second and long-term empty homes, including a 100% council tax premium on second homes from 1 April 2024.
“On long-term reform, the group agrees that to enable progress we must build consensus.
“Separately, the Programme for Government commits ministers to intensify work on designing a cruise ship levy. The Scottish Government is now engaging with local authorities, the cruise ship industry and others to develop more detailed proposals.”
