Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much additional revenue was raised by rises in council tax, including precepts by Lancaster District Council in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15 to date.

In 2013-14, Lancaster District Council increased their council tax level (including parish precepts) from £204.70 to £209.07. Based on their tax base in 2012-13, this would have raised the district £190,000 in additional council tax revenue. However by increasing their council tax level, they also gave up their Freeze Grant allocation worth £85,000 so their net gain was £105,000.

The table below shows the information above and the additional revenue raised by the County, Fire and Police and Crime Commissioners in Lancaster in 2013-14. The figures for the precepting authorities show the amount of additional council tax raised in Lancaster district and the freeze grant figures are the value of the freeze grant for the proportion of their tax base in Lancaster district.

Additional Council Tax raised in Lancaster in 2013-14 (£)

In 2013-14, Lancashire County Council received a Freeze Grant worth £4.3 million in total and Lancashire Fire received £300,000. While Lancashire Police’s increase in council tax level raised them a total of £1.4 million in additional council tax, they gave up a Freeze Grant allocation worth £706,000, so their net gain was £697,000.

In 2014-15, Lancaster District Council increased their council tax level (including parish precepts) to £213.35. Based on their tax base in 2013-14, this will raise the district £159,000 in additional council tax revenue. However by increasing their council tax level, they also gave up their Freeze Grant allocation worth £92,000 so their net gain was £67,000.

The table below shows the information above and the additional revenue raised by the County, Fire and Police and Crime Commissioners in Lancaster in 2014-15. The figures for the precepting authorities show the amount of additional council tax raised in Lancaster district and the freeze grant figures are the value of the freeze grant for the proportion of their tax base in Lancaster district.

Additional Council Tax raised in Lancaster in 2014-15 (£)

In 2014-15, Lancashire County Council’s increase in council tax levels raised them £7.2 million in additional council tax, but they gave up a Council Tax Freeze grant worth £4.3 million, so their net gain was £2.9 million. Lancashire Fire received £305,000 in Council Tax Freeze Grant. Lancashire Police’s increase in council tax level raised them a total of £1.2 million in additional council tax, but they gave up a Freeze Grant allocation worth £706,000 so their net gain was £474,000.

Council Tax Freeze Grant is placed into the baseline: so by not freezing, councils have lost out on ongoing extra funding from central government.

I would add that the ‘gain’ in these cases to the local authority is actually a ‘loss’ to taxpayers: as they are the ones who have to foot the bill for higher taxes. Local authorities’ primary duty is to their local electors. We would encourage every local authority to take up the offer of additional council tax freeze funding available in 2015-16 to help hard-working people with the cost of living.