The Welsh Government wants to completely change the way council tax is worked out in Wales. They want to revalue all Wales 1.5m homes and add more bands. You can read the detail to the plans, which are now out for public consultation here.
But the proposals haven't had the warmest of welcome. Our readers had big concerns, some of which we put to the Welsh Government economy minister Vaughan Gething in a press conference on Tuesday.
Readers raised concerns about council tax bills potentially going up based on the existing council tax formula. "Just because the value of your home has increased, doesn't mean you can afford to pay higher rates. This Welsh Government is an absolute joke. I really can't understand why people vote for them," said Karen Jones.
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Others wanted to know why the council tax bands are worked out using home values.
RhiSteve John said: "Why is it against the value of your home? My next door neighbour pays £500 less than me per year, but we have the same services. Council tax really does get me worked up, it doesn't pay to work hard and want to provide a nice home for your family". Sue Cresswell said: "Council tax should be done on earnings not house valuations, always was a stupid idea".
Other readers echoed that. Sarah Griffin said: "You can be property wealthy and cash strapped - how is that fair if your property has gone up in value and your wages have gone down!!!!"
Others made the point the policy was one Mr Drakeford's Labour party was elected on. "He said he was going to do this. More members. 20 Miles an hour. Tourist tax. And still they voted it in. If he was a Labour lamp-post some would still vote for him. Well no more can be said," said Adam John on our Facebook page".
There were questions about whether the consultation will even be listened to. Shelly Lyle said: "Everything will be ok - it’s going to public consultation so we will be able to raise concerns etc - no wait didn’t they do that with the new revised school terms times? That consultation resulted in 8 out of 10 parents, carers, pupils and education staff stating ‘the school year was appropriate for people’s’ lives - tough WG are changing it anyway - I honestly despair".
We asked if those who have extensions to their homes will be effectively punished. Mr Gething responded to that: "That's the wrong word but looking at and it's one of the questions in the consultation. It is a question not a decision about whether you should reflect those changes and the value that may add to the property at the time or near the time the work is done or when there's a when there's a future valuation. At the moment that doesn't really happen until the property sold.
"So as part of the challenge in keeping our system up to date and how to do this, that's an open question and it's a deliberate question being asked in there because again, if you want the system to be fair, and part of this we're going to reflect on property values, then you need to think about the way in which properties are altered during their lifetime as well. So it's an open question, and I'm sure there are lots of people who will be reflected in commenting on that. And I'm sure that people commenting on more than one side of the debate."
We also asked if it will mean charges will balance out across different council areas. A Band D property in Blaenau Gwent faces a council tax bill of £2,097 whereas in Cardiff it is £1,538.
"It's one of the things we need to consider in the consultations. Rather than setting out an objective to see those rates squeezed together we'll need to see what happens in the consultation and those points about how local authorities themselves how their own elected leaderships choose to set council tax rates.
"There's more than one reason in which the rates go up and down. There are sometimes different priorities in terms of what local authority wants to do to spend or to maintain public services and you see that during an administration's lifetime within local authorities that the rate at which council tax will rise will change in different circumstances in different parts of Wales. If you're going to have that and you're not going to have a national formula for council tax rises, or new rates, then you're going to have to wear the fact that there will be a variation in the way that different authorities set their rates and what those end up being.
"What we're trying to do though, is from the points are which we have responsibility within the system to try to make that fairer and more responsive and up to date. And that's exactly what we set out we want to do in our manifesto with the last election."
However, Luke Young from Citizens Advice Cymru said this wasn't the "big reform that is needed".
He said: "The Welsh Government must not miss this once in a generation opportunity to transform Wales’ council tax system into a progressive tax based on income and ability to pay. A fairer system of local taxation is the right thing to do. We need more than a revaluation of decades old tax bands, as overdue as that is. I recognise the difficulties involved in any big changes to council tax but I worry we’re adding extra support beams to prop up the current system, when clearly the whole thing needs replacing. An overhaul of this regressive and distortionary tax is possible, if politicians choose to do it."
Asked about his comments, Mr Gething said: "We're looking to do what we can within the powers that we have to reform, local taxation and the consultation that starts today on council tax allows us to do that. We know that for example, the property valuation was done 20 years ago and they're out of date. We're going to look to have bands that are more responsive to the realities of income levels as well as updated property values themselves and then to try to keep the council tax system more updated in the future.
"We'll also look closely at the support we provide for people who need help in paying those bills.
"A broader look at local taxation is something that would be best done if we had a UK Government that was actually prepared to look again, at the way in which local taxes are raised, but also how money is then divided and sent out through the country itself.
"The exercise we're undertaking is actually a really significant exercise in itself will take up lots of time, energy and effort within this government and indeed within local authorities and our stakeholders to we're open minded about the future reform, as I say on a much broader basis but I do think that requires the UK Government on board and on side in taking those much bigger steps to have a much broader property revaluation up local taxation, rethink for us and across UK we'd want to do that in a way our powers are properly exercised."
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