Council tax will go up by 4.99% in Tameside

Council tax will rise for residents of Tameside this year, as the latest town hall meeting saw the 4.99 per cent hike officially voted through. 

The authority’s leader Eleanor Wills praised the £314m budget for the delivery of day-to-day services, and she highlighted that no cuts are planned. 

The tax rise comes despite core spending power (CSP) for the council increasing by seven per cent – due to additional government funding. In cash terms this means an extra £20.5m for Tameside council, the meeting in Dukinfield Town Hall was told.  

Some £7.9m of the £20.5m will come from the council tax increase, meaning it is only a boost of £12.9m in government grants. If councils don’t raise tax by the maximum amount, they face reduced government funding the following year, the meeting heard. 

Although no service cuts were announced, savings of £8.973m are still needed to set a balanced budget for next year, according to budget papers. Improved efficiency and lower department costs have been found by finance officers for next year. 

Conservative leader Cllr Doreen Dickinson pointed out that savings proposed in budgets in years gone by have never been met, with reserves covering the cost. Coun Roderick said a business case for each saving was made this time around, so he was ‘much more confident’ in these saving targets. 

The finance boss couldn’t rule out using reserves again in future, explaining it could happen because the council legally has to set a balanced budget. 

Cllr Roderick added: “None of us want to increase council tax, but we are left with no choice to do that this year.  

“If we don’t do this the council loses £2.1m every year for future years.” 

Cllr Wills added: “For 14 years, Tameside was operating with one hand tied behind its back. We have seen a 40.1% reduction in funding in local government. Today the tide is turning. Finally we are seeing a fairer allocation of government funding.” 

The £156m capital investment programme over the next five years comes as part of the budget approval. This cash will see ‘transformational town centre regeneration, and significant economic and housing growth’, councillors were told. 

The capital programme focuses on investing in redeveloping Tameside’s town centres and bringing historic buildings such as Ashton Town Hall back into use. 

The new annual council tax bill broken down by tax bands, including the anticipated Greater Manchester precepts rises, in Tameside (excluding Mossley Parish Council precept): 

Tax Band A: £1,631.08 

Tax Band B: £1,902.93 

Tax Band C: £2,174.77 

Tax Band D: £2,446.63 

Tax Band E: £2,990.32 

Tax Band F: £3,534.01 

Tax Band G: £4,077.71 

Tax Band H: £4,893.26