There are two caveats to Aditya Chakrabortty’s excellent critique of the inequities of council tax (One simple change could restore faith in local democracy. But nobody is talking about it, 1 March). First, it’s unfortunate that he included “council houses … rotting in disrepair” in his litany of decay in the public realm. They may well be but, by law, spending on council housing is supported by tenants’ rents, not council tax. The trope about “housing on the rates” should be avoided; the housing revenue account has been ringfenced for more than 40 years now.
Second, a 3% tax on disposable income is not a good substitute for council tax. The latter is indeed ill-designed and regressive, but there is nothing wrong with the principle that property as well as income should be taxed. Rather than adding to the marginal rate of income tax, there are many suggestions for more progressive property taxes, for example from the Wealth Tax Commission, which would support a more resilient tax base and greater fiscal choice at local level.
David Griffiths
Huddersfield, West Yorkshire
