There are surely few phrases in the English language that are more instantly dispiriting than “council tax rise”. As far as buzz-kills go, it’s pretty much deadly. But those three joy-sapping words are pretty much inescapable right now, thanks to news that, for the third year running, the vast majority of households in England will be hit by the maximum possible increase to their council tax bill come April, when the new financial year kicks off.
On Monday (17 March), it was confirmed that 88 per cent of 153 English upper-tier local authorities will introduce a 4.99 per cent increase to council tax come April – that’s the biggest raise that they’re allowed to introduce without holding a referendum. My council is one of them, and statistically speaking, yours most probably is too. Six councils have even been given permission to raise bills by significantly more than that: Bradford council, for example, has introduced increases of 9.99 per cent, while both the London borough of Newham, and Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire, hiked rates by 8.99 per cent.
