cover image: no title

20.500.12592/0bmh80

no title

18 Sep 2023

This means that a number of lower income people are paying some of the highest Council Tax bills in the country and would fall victim to the proposed increases. [...] We are glad to see that the Scottish Government acknowledges the regressive nature of the tax in the consultation paper. [...] To this end, instead of increasing outdated bandings with little relevance to today’s housing market, the Scottish Government should commit to entirely replace the current Council Tax system before the end of this parliament in 2026. [...] The interim report of the MIG expert group recommended that the Scottish Government should ensure the Council Tax Reduction and water rates discount for households on the lowest incomes are reviewed with a view to taking significantly greater numbers of low-income families out of paying these charges. [...] Decreasing costs facing people and households underneath the level of a MIG is a critical aspect of the realisation of this Scottish Government commitment.6 According to Christians Against Poverty, Council Tax arrears are the largest source of debt facing their clients in Scotland7 and lower-income households in Scotland are more likely to experience problem debt.

Authors

David Eyre

Pages
7
Published in
United Kingdom