Council tax payers in Cheshire East look set for a 2.99% hike from April adding £47.21 a year to a bill for a Band D property, writes Belinda Ryan.
Members of the corporate policy committee agreed to recommend that full council approves the increase as part of its budget for 2022/3.
The 2.99%, which includes one per cent ring-fenced for adult social care, still needs to be rubber stamped at the full meeting of the council on February 24.
Only the full council can approve the budget and then set the resulting council tax.
If approved, it will see Cheshire East’s share of the council tax bill rise from £1,579.03 to £1,626.24 for a Band D property.
Conservative group leader Janet Clowes (Wybunbury) said the Tories had questioned whether to support the full 2.99% proposed by the Labour/Independent administration.
“When we were looking at this budget as a group we did want to question closely whether or not we should be taking the adult social care precept or the full 1.99% in the light of current difficulties that we know residents are facing as we move towards April,” she said.
“We have taken the view that, at the current time, it would not be appropriate to seek to reduce the council tax, particularly in the area of social care.”
She called for an ongoing review of the adult social care budget “because clearly it is an area of stress”.
Deputy council leader Craig Browne (Ind) said: “I’m delighted that once again, for this administration, it’s a balanced budget over the four year cycle.
“I’m actually pleased we’re delivering it with only a 2.99% council tax rise now.”
The Alderley Edge councillor said it had been a difficult feat to achieve as the council had received no un-ring-fenced revenue support grant since 2019 and, as recently as 2014/5, Cheshire East had been receiving around £59m a year through this grant.
“The vast majority of the council tax that we receive is simply replacing that lost revenue stream, so this budget represents excellent value for money and I encourage everyone to support it,” he said.
Deputy Conservative group leader Stewart Gardiner (Con) raised concerns about the impact on the council in the future because of the changes to adult social care funding.
“Unfortunately, this serious subject that we’re discussing is nothing compared to the serious subject we might have to consider this time next year or the year after, given the number of significant changes that we will have to bring on board through further changes to the social care provision and the government’s changes to how that is funded,” he said.
He added it was because of discussions with the council’s social care and health bosses about the pressures on the budgets for social care “that we stepped back from suggesting that the 2.99 per cent should not be requested in full”.
As well as the proposed council increase, a 4.43% increase in the police precept was approved at the police and crime panel on Friday February 2, adding an extra £10 a year to a Band D bill taking the police share to £235.44.
And Cheshire Fire Authority, on Wednesday (February 9), approved an increase of 1.99% in its precept, putting an extra £1.61 a year on a Band D bill taking that element to £82.48.
If Cheshire East’s full council rubber stamps the 2.99% increase as expected in two weeks’ time, the combined annual Band D council tax bill will be £1,944.16.
This does not include the parish precept, which varies depending on which town/parish you live in.
An increase will be needed to fund the police commissioners large pay rise to his understudy.