Starmer calls for council tax increase to be abandoned

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said that expected council tax rises should be scrapped to ease the pressure on family budgets.

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, the opposition leader said that the ability for local authorities in England to raise council tax by five per cent from April could mean that those living in a band D property could see bills rise by an average of £90.

The government maintains that the rise in council tax bills, plus extra money from central government, will ensure a real-terms increase in support for local services. Of the five per cent, three per cent will be used to top up adult social care budgets.

However, Starmer has urged Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ‘give families the security they need’ by dropping the tax increase. He said that the prime minister said he would do 'whatever is necessary' to support local authorities in providing vital services - and that ‘he needs to make good on that promise’.