Councillors on Merseyside Police and Crime Panel agree to 7.2% rise in police element of council tax from April 2018
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Merseyside Police and Crime Panel 6th February 2018 Part 1 of 3
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Merseyside Police and Crime Panel 6th February 2018 Part 2 of 3
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Merseyside Police and Crime Panel 6th February 2018 Part 3 of 3
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Merseyside Police and Crime Panel 6th February 2018 slides
On Tuesday, the Merseyside Police and Crime Panel (the two councillors on it from the Wirral are Cllr Tony Smith (Labour) and Cllr Cherry Povall (Conservative)) agreed to the Police and Crime Commissioner’s request for a 7.2% rise in the element of council tax that goes to pay for the Merseyside Police.
Last year, for a band D property in Wirral, £165.97 from council tax went towards the running of the Merseyside Police and the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside. This year (2018-19) it will increase to £12 more (£177.97) for a band D property on the Wirral.
The proposed increase in council tax of 7.2% led to concerns expressed by councillors on the Merseyside Police and Crime Panel that the people of Merseyside would be paying more for a police service with less police officers.
An Independent Member of the Police and Crime Panel was concerned about whether the public were misled during a recent consultation on increasing council tax. The costs of running the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside were also commented on by the Panel.
Ultimately the Panel agreed to the Police and Crime Commissioner’s proposed budget.
A decision on the fire element of council tax by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority is expected to be made on the 22nd February 2018.
The ruling Labour administration on Wirral Council have also recently published their budget which proposes a 5.99% increase in the Wirral Council element of council tax. Their budget will be proposed at a Cabinet meeting on the 19th February and decided at a meeting of all Wirral Council councillors on the 5th March.
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This is understandable.
Covering your tracks, your crooked council connections, failing to investigate a local MP’s public money extortion attempts and providing drink / driving clemencies to well known elected officials don’t come cheap.
Hi John, I thought there needed a local referendum before any increase in rates over 4.99% overall rate increase. Can you clarify please.
Thanks for your comment.
The Government each year sets the threshold over which an increase would require a referendum.
For the police element of council tax that’s been set for 2018-19 at a £12 increase for Band D (which equates to a 7.2% rise). For the council for 2018-19, the referendum level this year is (3% (adult social care) + 3% (general council services)) which totals 6%. So 5.99% is the highest it can be raised by (the Wirral Council element) without triggering a referendum.
I think last year it was 4.99% (3% adult social care + 1.99%).
Just to clarify as far as I know, different referendum thresholds are set for each element of the council tax (Wirral Council, fire and police) rather than one that applies to the overall increase.
This is because each element is set by three different bodies (Wirral Council, Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority and the Police and Crime Commissioner for Merseyside (subject to the Merseyside Police and Crime Panel not vetoing it)).
Thank you John for the clarification it seems they make up the rules to suit themselves and the poor ratepayers have to pay.
When you earn the money these Commissoner’s earn £12 isn’t much, but it is when you on a low low income and just keep you head above the water!
Yes, she receives for being Police and Crime Commissioner £85,000 a year (and if you watch the video above she points out the staff in the Office of the Police and Crime Commissioner’s office have an increase but she doesn’t).