"Only the part of Wandsworth's bill that funds council services other than for adult social care will be frozen. It means that total Band-D bills in Wandsworth will increase by more than 30 a year, to 1,020.35. However this will be barely half the typical bill in London, where most boroughs will send out demands in excess of 2,000 a year."
"Wandsworth's Labour leader Simon Hogg said the council had one of the lowest levels of debt and some of the highest financial reserves in London. He told residents: This allows us to freeze the main element of council tax, keep more money in your pocket and invest in what matters to you. However, council documents show the authority will have to draw 38m from reserves to balance its budget in 2026/27 on top of the 15m it withdrew from reserves for the current financial year."
"Aled Richards-Jones, the Tory opposition group leader on Wandsworth council, posted a picture of a council tax bill on X that showed how residents would pay more. He accompanied his post in response to a post from Mr Hogg about the council tax freeze - with the word porkies and a lying face emoji. In a letter to residents, Mr Richards-Jones said Labour's claim to have frozen council tax simply isn't true and the reality is shocking."
Wandsworth council froze the main element of council tax that funds services other than adult social care. Total Band-D bills will increase by more than £30 to £1,020.35, remaining well below the London average of over £2,000. The council will use £38m from reserves to balance the 2026/27 budget, on top of £15m withdrawn this year. Labour leader Simon Hogg cited low debt and high reserves to justify the freeze. Tory opposition leader Aled Richards-Jones said the freeze is misleading, highlighted future government funding cuts and warned reserves may be depleted.
Read at www.standard.co.uk
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]