Ridiculous increase in council tax for police funding

[NigelGresley]

Last year the increase on our council tax bill for the police was 12%, this year it has increased by 22% !!!

I am furious with the government for cutting central funding and transferring the burden to local people. But at the same time wondering whether our police force is really cutting its cloth accordingly.

Anyone else seen such huge increases?
How much longer can this continue? Some people are really going to struggle to pay.

Driving in repeat visits brings in money. Local business thrive, more open, business rates are paid, parking is paid, investors get interested etc.

If the city thrives, the revenue does too and so it can be invested where needed.

My job requires me to liaise closely with the Police so I realise how overstretched they are. My council tax has gone up by 12% which of course I'm not thrilled about, but I can understand why it needs to be done. I think people's frustration comes from the hypocrisy of our government who have cut 22,000 police officers since 2010 because apparently there is no money to fund public services but consistently find the money to give tax breaks to the very wealthy and to huge corporations. They're starving our essential public services of funds and the cost is being passed onto ordinary people, which is fundamentally unfair.

I would mind less if there were any police round here, The nearest police station (7 miles away) is closed and there is no police presence here (rurally) at all.

I'd also like to see the end of very early retirement (I know it is changing). I believe that much of police income is channelled into pension provision. All that experience gets lost and we are expected to pay for generous pensions. There must be "thinking based" jobs where experienced police officers can add a great deal of value.

Fuzzy why do you think that is?

Oh yes....funding cuts.

Council tax has gone up to try and plug the gap

Sorry but we all need to suck it up or accept a continued substandard police service.

I'm all for higher taxes if they were properly used. Not what our government is doing now, cutting funding and services but increasing taxation. Where's the money going? Offshore accounts no doubt.

We have the opposite problem.

In our local area, the council tax has been frozen (for over 10 years!).

Sounds great on paper, but the freeze and reduced central funding mean that all of the public services are in an absolutely shocking state.

Yet still, every time council elections come round we hear the old "We have frozen council tax for X years, aren't we great". Well no, the whole borough is crumbling, literally in some cases.

I would personally be happy to pay extra and have the local services and police better funded. I am aware I am fortunate to be in a position where I can afford to want this though, and some people would find it hard for rises.

I know that Dolores. Just musing that it would be nice to see something I have paid for. My council tax goes up (and on a VERY small fixed pension I can't afford that), my services don't increase. Or indeed I get no local service at all. My ex police officer friend (retired at 48) gets an index linked pension.

I don't expect the world to be fair, I do expect an element of reasonableness.

My solution - raise income tax rather than local taxes which are flat across the board, regardless of ability to pay..

We've just got out bill and don't have this. We have

• 8.9 % for the GLA +2% for adult social care
• 3% for the borough

Unless policing comes under that, the GLA element?

*We've just got out bill and don't have this. We have

• 8.9 % for the GLA +2% for adult social care
• 3% for the borough

Unless policing comes under that, the GLA element?*

Yes policing comes under the GLA for all London boroughs. Each borough will have the same % rise. Do note though this is 8.9% increased of the GLA part not the overall bill.

LoudBatPerson and mari50
Do you two live in a London Borough with a bumbling buffoon as your MP?
I have to drive through there sometimes for work and notice all the flags about "weve frozen council tax for 10 years" . I just roll my eyes at them..... those flags on the high streets must be costing a fortune. Theres got to come a point where once the bones are stripped the council need more money and that increase is going to hurt even more.

@SaveKevin - Yes! - Well, I do at least.

Those banners are a particular bug bear of mine. I mutter many expletives as we pass them. Across the whole borough, there are so many of the things.

My solution - raise income tax rather than local taxes which are flat across the board, regardless of ability to pay

We can't keep adding more and more to income tax though. There are some people that don't work but have huge amounts of wealth and live in massive homes. Why shouldnt they pay their share too? They are getting their bins emptied, streets lit, use of council facilities etc just like working people.

I think council tax should be reviewed and linked to the number of people at each property and the rate set accordingly to the services offered by the council which can be voted on. If you live in an area that wants to vote for Cycle Pathway Improvement Directors and Diversity Managers then you pay for it.

Fuzzy , your retired police officer at 48 , has to have done his full contract of 30 years , and his pension isn’t actually index linked until 55, same as any other pension . And the rate of inflation the government use to calculate pension raises has now been based on CPI , rather than RPI , because the rate tends to be lower. You want a pension to complain about , complain to your local MP instead . His is much better than yours and for less effort I bet .

Those banners are bloody everywhere in your borough LoudBatPerson
I saw the front of a local newspaper about uproar about a big police station closing down..... its like the two are linked in someway, but i just can't put my finger on how.

The police element of mine has increased by 14.1% (in South Yorkshire).

The parish spending for my parish is zero. Yep, zero. I know that its policing etc is covered by other elements of the council tax, but it's still a bit disappointing to see that no money at all will be spent other than that.

I think council tax should be reviewed and linked to the number of people at each property

That didn't go so well last time they tried it!

I saw the front of a local newspaper about uproar about a big police station closing down..... its like the two are linked in someway, but i just can't put my finger on how.

I know! It's such a strange coincidence

No likes the current system but no one ever wants to change.... no wonder our elected officials take us for mugs

ours has gone up by 11%. Personally I'm OK with this as it looks necessary. What i do object to are the massive redundancy packages we've had to pay out for recently when councils merged 475k for 12 years service seems excessive to me.

From the Guardian
www.theguardian.com/money/2018/mar/03/council-tax-unfair-westminster

Generally, we under-tax wealth in the UK, which means we place excessive burdens instead on working people’s income and spending, while the rentiers who have prospered from property wealth gains have been left relatively untouched. Taxing property is also relatively simple, as houses can’t be hidden

Thank god it’s going up. It’s so desperately needed.
The number of officers on the ground fit to deploy in my force is terrifying sometimes and if the public knew they would be horrorfied.

You are pissed off that more money is going to an overstretches police force?
How very dare they give more money to a much needed public service !
The outrage!!

Our Police funding has gone up 18.7% (council tax rise 2.99%) but that just shows how under funded it was in the first place.

We're in the West Midlands, yesterday the local police were out patrolling parks for knives, which is great. I'd much rather they had the money to stop crime before it happens rather than just enough to deal with the aftermath.

Well yet again central Government have cut police budgets but they didnt reduce your CT to account for it. NOW they are being shamed into increasing police expenditureand they have the brass neck to make it sound like they are doing good and adding extra money when in fact we are only backtracking and still historically short of pre cut expenditure. BUt now they are putting up your CT to get back to where they were a few years back !! No wonder lots of people choose the unemployed/black market lifestyle..

Yep 14% here too. It just keeps going up.
I work for the police btw, but our pay doesn't go up hardly at all.
It should be attached to income tax, as it would be fairer that way. But I think the government doesn't like to be seen increasing taxes, so they leave it to the local.