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29
Jan 2021
How much Harrogate council taxpayers could be paying in 2021
Harrogate district taxpayers could face paying a council tax bill of more than £2,000 this coming year.
Officials at Harrogate Borough Council, North Yorkshire County Council and North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner are set to decide on their proposals in February.
In total, if approved, the final bill for the 2021/22 financial year would come tot £2,007.17 - a 3% increase on last year.
Cllr Carl Les, leader of North Yorkshire County Council, said there had "never been a more difficult time" to ask the public to pay more for council services.
Each authority has tabled an increase in its share and will vote individually on its proposal.
Local town and parish councils will also levy a parish precept on the bill..
In Ripon, local councillors decided to freeze the precept for 2021/22 meaning residents will pay £71.89 to the city council.
Meanwhile, Knaresborough Town Council has agreed a 1.99% increase in its precept to around £25 for a band D property.
Uncertainty over council funding
The hike in council tax comes as local authorities face a strain on resources amid the coronavirus pandemic and uncertainty over future funding.
Gary Fielding, corporate director of resources at the county council, told councillors recently that there “had never been more uncertainty than there is at the moment” for councils.
Read more:
- County council leaders warn of council tax rise to cover covid costs
- £4.1 million spent on PPE in North Yorkshire
- Harrogate council proposes council tax hike
Meanwhile, Cllr Les told an executive meeting of the county council that there had never been a tougher time for the council to make a decision on increasing council tax.
He said:
He added that the council will continue to lobby government for fairer funding following a decade of cuts to local authority grants.
The pandemic has forced councils to think more carefully about finances.
So far, the county council has spent £80 million responding to covid. Meanwhile the borough council faces a £5.9 million cost due to losses in car parking and leisure centre revenue.
This has left officials proposing to hike council tax and dip into reserves to balance the books.
The county council plans to use £8.2 million of its own funds to offset a shortfall next year, but officials have warned it cannot continue to use its reserves in the long run.
North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner will make decisions on their budgets next month.
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