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Council tax reassurance for people living alone
Reporter: Lewis Jones
Date online: 01 February 2012
OLDHAMERS who live alone have been reassured their council tax bills are not set to soar.
Fears were raised that Labour-run councils across the country were due to scrap the single person discount of 25 per cent.
The change could mean annual bills rocketing by almost £360 for those in the average Band D homes.
But councillor Abdul Jabbar, cabinet member for finance and resources, has said that no firm plans have been put in place and change will not be happening soon.
He said: “Oldham Council — along with all other local authorities — was asked for an initial view by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) as part of its consultation exercise on the localisation of council tax benefit.
“I want to be absolutely clear here that we haven’t come to any firm view on this matter — we merely submitted an initial response.
“I want to reassure residents that we’ve also made no provision whatsoever to implement ending the Single Person Discount in our forward budget planning.”
It follows a front-page report published in the Sunday Express that said widows and divorcees would be hit hard by the tax that would make them pay the same rate as couples or households with several working adults.
The idea has come out of Government consultation on how to save 10 per cent on council tax benefit.
Oldham treasurer Steven Mair was also quoted in the Express story.
Councillor Jabbar said: “The quote used in the Sunday Express is taken out of context and — crucially –— at no point in our submission did we state that the Single Person Discount ‘should go’.”
“As a council we would also clearly seek to protect our most vulnerable residents, like pensioners, from the impact of any changes that are proposed by Government.”
Eight million households currently claim the discount.
Comments
The Single Person discount of 25% is ridiculous. It should be increased to 50%. I live alone and yet in the house next door, there are five adults, all using the same public services as me. I pay 75% of the Council Tax while their household only pays 100%. Where's the fairness in that?
First of all the 25% single person reduction is currently the national legal figure and not within the council's power to vary it. This Government is changing the goal posts in squeezing resources to local government while saying you can change the rules on council tax benefit if you will. In other words yje Goernment is saying we are the nasty ones but we'll make it look like you.
The fairest system of all is the poll tax, and look how the left reacted to that when it was proposed. The more you use, the more you pay, simple enough.
No Pro Drive the poll tax wasn't the fairest system. It bore no relationship to the ability to pay.
What does no firm plans mean? It usually means that yes they plan to do it but they aren't admitting it yet. If they dont mean to do it, why dont they just say no plans?
The reassurance is only for the time being.I struggle to pay mine now let alone an increase.They intend to charge you more and give you less back!
Even the thought of this is a disgrace. Single working, home owning adults targetted for even more tax! Another effort by labour to find funds for the generation of lay abouts that it created. Another kick in the teeth for those of us with enough pride to actually go out and earn our money. Maybe we should all throw the towel in, start large families and rely on the mugs who work to pay for us.
Do we not pay enough Tax on everything else...
Get Wage pay Tax
Save Money Pay Tax again on the same money you got from working...
Die oo yes even pay tax again on that...
it stupid.. The more they have the more they want.....
People are so quick to point at the council. Its the government who are doing this! Direct your ire at them!
They can save MORE than 10% by not paying CT benefits to those too lazy & selfish to work! I'm sick of my taxes going on services i don't use regularly & on funding other people's chosen lifestyles. Where the fairness? my monthly bus pass to work is the same as my monthly CT, my pay's frozen, my bills go up every year, i have to pay for my own meds & any training courses, i get NOTHING for free,this is the ONLY help we get as "single" taxpayers, why discriminate against us even more??????
Jeremy, I have to disagree with you when you say the Government is making local councils look bad. If the Government you supported had not wrecked our economy by overspending during a debt fuelled boom then councils might not be facing such tough settlements. We were left with the biggest budget deficit in the G20. Before you mention bankers as you did so cynically in your election leaflets last year, other countries managed the global crisis better because their economies were in better shape.
Have Your Say
Mr Jabbar says's “I want to be absolutely clear here that we haven’t come to any firm view on this matter — we merely submitted an initial response". So what is the inital response and will he rule it out altogether. Or will Mr Jabbar & Co tell everyone after this year's election's what their initial response will be?
By St Francis of Assisi in Oldham @ 01/02/2012 16:37:38