Swindon Labour leader demands Government abandons planned council tax increases

The leader of Swindon Borough Council's Labour Group says working people are paying the price of a Government that has lost its grip.

Cllr Jim Grant made the claim in a letter to Chancellor Rishi Sunak, calling on him to abandon plans to increase council tax.

The letter said in part: "Working people in Swindon are already feeling the squeeze as a result of your increase in National Insurance, your £20 a week cut to Universal Credit, and higher energy bills – if you insist on forcing council tax up too that could push many families over the edge.”

“The government has lost its grip, and working people are now paying the price. Britain has become a low growth high tax economy – yet still your government wastes billions on crony contracts for your friends and on a Test and Trace system that has never worked.”

“You cannot keep hitting the people of Swindon with ever bigger tax bills to pay for your waste and your mistakes. On behalf of local people, I urge you to think again, and to reverse your planned council tax rises and funding cuts to local services and stop the squeeze on families in Swindon.”

This month the Government is expected to announce the Local Government Finance Settlement, detailing how much funding each council will receive for vital services such as adult and children’s social care, street cleaning, and community safety. 

A Swindon Labour spokesperson said: "But the Chancellor has already announced that he wants to force council tax bills up by 9% to fill the gaps created by years of government cuts – leaving local people to pay for the government’s mistakes. In the last three years under Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak council tax bills have rocketed by 13%, with the average Band D council tax bill now almost £1900."