It is time to scrap council tax

Council Tax bill

Council tax should be scrapped and replaced; it is outdated, regressive, and, despite being notionally based on the value of homes, functions in many ways like a poll tax – exactly the type of tax it was introduced to get away from – according to a report by the Resolution Foundation.

The analysis shows that council tax today shares many of the features of a poll tax, in particular in having only a very weak link to property values. This is because council tax operates within wide bands with a single band covering significantly different property values; has only very small gaps between bands compared to differences in property values; and because regional variation has allowed some areas with more expensive properties to charge lower tax rates.

Laura Gardiner, Principal Researcher at the Resolution Foundation, said: “Despite replacing the unpopular ‘poll tax’, council tax has come to look increasingly like it. It’s time we looked to abolish it. The council tax you pay is meant to be tied to the value of the property you live in, but when someone living in a property worth £100,000 pays a tax rate five times higher than someone living in a property worth £1 million, something has gone seriously wrong.

“Young families and those in relatively cheaper properties are losing out disproportionately. The government should implement a new system that is truly progressive and avoids the ludicrous situation of people in mansions paying little more, and in some cases less, than families living in tiny flats.”

There are eight council tax bands based on property values from 27 years ago: 

• A up to £40,000
• B £40,001 - £52,000
• C £52,001 - £68,000
• D £68,001 - £88,000
• E £88,001 - £120,000
• F £120,001 - £160,000
• G £160,001 - £320,000
• H over £320,000

Council Tax is set for each financial year (1 April to 31 March) and Rochdale Borough Council is set to increase the tax locally by 5.58% on 1 April.

http://www.rochdaleonline.co.uk/news-features/2/news-headlines/116225/council-tax-to-increase-by-a-whopping-558pc

Council tax charges from 1 April 2018:

• A £1,175.78
• B £1,371.75
• C £1,567.70
• D £1,763.68
• E £2,155.60
• F £2,547.54
• G £2,939.46
• H £3,527.36