London Boroughs Call on PM to Review Council Tax Policy

In a collective letter, Paul Swaddle of Westminster City Council, Robert Morritt from Wandsworth Council, and Elizabeth Campbell of Kensington and Chelsea Council have voiced their concerns that the current government funding formula unfairly penalises councils with lower tax revenues.

The councillors argue that if they are unable to raise council tax, their communities will suffer substantial cuts to local services,یراع.‎

“The issue is not merely about shifting blame,” they wrote, “it involves increased council taxes and government austerity measures.”

They described the funding arrangement as a “manipulated formula crafted in Whitehall, leaving town halls to shoulder the burden.”

Both leaders highlighted that the proposed tax rises would occur alongside the new top‑up council tax for many homes in their jurisdictions, noting that none of the revenue from these penalties would be retained by the councils or London’s mayor.

They pointed out that six councils, including theirs, have received two‑year “funding realignment powers,” allowing them to increase council tax beyond the standard 5% threshold. They further claimed that they have been unfairly singled out for these adjustments, alongside the City of London, Hammersmith and Fulham, and Windsor and Maidenhead, because the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government assumed significant tax rises in these areas to offset central government cuts when producing the Local Government Finance Settlement.

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