A freeze on council tax must be ended ‘immediately’, according to the main body representing local authorities in Scotland.
The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla) today told the Scottish Government’s commission on alternatives to council tax that no time should be wasted on reforming the system.
It said local people needed to be empowered to ‘decide on levels of local taxation in relation to the services they want’, adding that it was ‘completely inconsistent with a strong local democracy for this to be determined or enforced nationally’.
‘We would therefore ask the Commission to call for an immediate end to the council tax freeze and not to wait for an alternative local taxation system to be developed and implemented,’ COSLA said in its response to the Commission on Local Tax Reform.
‘Operated effectively, the council tax is designed to be determined locally and has a potentially strong link with democratic accountability. However, this link has been significantly eroded by the council tax freeze and must be reinstated as a matter of urgency.’
It said local authorities should be granted powers to establish new taxes on ‘residents, occupants, property owners or visitors’ to raise additional income.
A Scottish government spokesman said: ‘Scottish ministers believe the current council tax system is unfair - that's why we have worked with our local government partners to freeze the council tax for the eighth consecutive year, providing £70m per annum.
‘All 32 councils have confirmed the continuation of the council tax freeze for 2015-16 delivering cumulative savings for an average Band D household, over the period 2008-16, of around £1,200 based on the additional £70m being provided each year.
‘We have now set up the cross-party commission on local tax reform jointly with Cosla, to examine fairer alternatives to the current system, and the commission will deliver its independent report in the autumn.’
