Agenda item

Council Tax Setting 2020/21

Meeting of Budget and Council Tax Setting Meeting, Council, Tuesday 25 February 2020 10.30 am (Item 11.)

A report from Chief Executive Officers Alistair Cunningham and Terence Herbert.

Minutes:

The Chairman invited Councillor Simon Jacobs, Cabinet member for Finance, to present the report which detailed the various calculations in the prescribed format to enable Council to approve the council tax requirement for 2020/2021. The report had been updated in the Agenda Supplement. The 2% care levy in particular was noted, and that average town or parish council tax rises, set by town and parishes, was 9%.

Councillor Jacobs proposed, seconded by Councillor Philip Whitehead, that the

recommendations in the report be adopted.

Statements were then made received from members of the public. Rachel Burge made a statement regarding the climate emergency and the budget and future budget preparations.

Comments were then made on the proposals by Group Leaders as follows:

Councillor Ernie Clark made a comment about whether central government should consider capping available increases for town and parish councils, and noted that the Fire Authority did not have the same ability to increase its part of the precept as the Police.

The Chairman then invited comments in debate.

There were comments on the devolution of assets and services to town and parish councils increasing their responsibilities, and that the rise in council tax was above the level of inflation, and whilst supported the pressure on households was increasing. There were also comments on being understanding in cases of council tax enforcement. In response it was stated the council worked with Citizens Advice to assist people who were in arrears on their council tax, and assistance offered to help people get out of trouble where possible.

Councillor Jacobs reemphasised that approximately 25000 were eligible for council tax relief.

At the conclusion of debate, it was.

Resolved:

1. It be noted that on 10 December 2019 the Council calculated:

(a) the Council Tax Base 2020/2021 for the whole Wiltshire Council area as 187,935.69 [Item T in the formula in Section 31B(3) of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, as amended (the "Act")] and,

(b) for dwellings in those parts of its area to which a Parish precept relates as in the attached Appendix.

2. Calculate that the Council Tax requirement for the Council’s own purposes for 2020/2021 (excluding parish precepts) is £284,722,570.

3. That the following amounts be calculated for the year 2020/2021 in accordance with Sections 31 to 36 of the Act:

(a)	872,749,230	(Gross Revenue Expenditure including transfers to reserves, parish precepts and any collection fund deficit) being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A(2) of the Act taking into account all precepts issued to it by Parish Councils).
(b)	564,126,764	(Gross Revenue Income including transfers from reserves, General Government Grants and any collection fund surplus) being the aggregate of the amounts which the Council estimates for the items set out in Section 31A(3) of the Act.
(c)	£308,622,465	(Net Revenue Expenditure including parish precepts) being the amount by which the aggregate at 3(a) above exceeds the aggregate at 3(b) above, calculated by the Council in accordance with Section 31A(4) of the Act as its Council Tax requirement for the year. (Item R in the formula in Section 31A(4) of the Act).
(d)	£1642.17	(Wiltshire Council band D tax plus average Town & Parish Councils Band D Council Tax) being the amount at 3(c) above (Item R), all divided by Item T (2 above), calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 31B(1) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year (including Parish precepts), as shown below:

Band A

Band

1,094.78

1,277.24

1,459.71

1,642.17

2,007.10

2,372.02

2,736.95

3,282.34

(e)

£23,899,895.13

(Aggregate of Town & Parish Council Precepts) being the aggregate amount of all special items (Parish Precepts) referred to in Section 34(1) of the Act (as per the attached Appendix C).

(f)

£1,515.00

(band D Council Tax for Wiltshire Council purposes only) being the amount at 3(d) above less the result given by dividing the amount at 3(e) above by Item T (2 above), calculated by the Council, in accordance with Section 34(2) of the Act, as the basic amount of its Council Tax for the year for dwellings in those parts of its area to which no Parish precept relates, as shown below:

Band A

Band B

Band

1,010.00

1,178.33

1,346.67

1,515.00

1,851.67

2,188.33

2,525.00

3,030.00

In accordance with the Constitution this was a recorded vote.

Votes for the motion (77)

Votes against the motion (1)

Votes in abstention (0)

Details of each vote are attached to the minutes.

Supporting documents: