William Eichler 08 February 2024

Thurrock braced for 8% council tax hike

Thurrock residents could soon be hit with an 8% increase in council tax as the local authority attempts to close its budget gap.

The Government has granted the cash-strapped council permission to increase council tax by 10%.

Conservative council leader Andrew Jefferies said last month he would not introduce a hike of this much.

This week, after announcing the proposed 8% rise, Cllr Jefferies said he had ‘resisted pressure’ to go to 10%, prompting the Labour group leader John Kent to tell the BBC that the leader ‘appears to be selling this as good news’.

In December 2022, the Conservative-run council issued a section 114 notice, declaring itself in financial distress with a £469m funding black hole.

#Council tax #Finance

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