Budget Response: £100 for Council Tax Is Sticking Plaster

8.57.52pm UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 17th Mar 2004

Commenting on the budget announcement of £100 pounds to help the elderly with council tax bills, Cllr Paul Elgood, Leader the Liberal Democrats on the City Council, said:

Liberal Democrats say the Council Tax should be replaced with a tax based on the person's ability to pay.

"The Chancellor has not even provided a long term solution. The £100 bonus is just a sticking plaster for this year.

"Tucked away in the budget is the statement that council tax will increase by 7.4% in 2005/ 06, making an average band D property bill £1253.37.

"This increase is more than three times inflation and amounts to a stealth tax.

"Although Labour is clearly running scared in the face of the powerful Liberal Democrat campaign to scrap council tax, they still haven't grasped the depth of feeling against this tax from the various groups affected by it.

"Council tax hits all those on low and modest incomes, not just pensioners.

"The only fair solution is to scrap council tax and replace it with local income tax, based on the ability to pay."