Council plans tax rise of almost 3%

Mid Sussex District Council says it plans to increase its part of the council tax by 2.95%.

The rise was proposed during a cabinet meeting on Monday and will be put to full council for approval later this month.

The rise will see the council's part of Band D bills rise from £196.43 to £202.22 from April.

On top of this, residents face a £15 increase from Sussex Police and a proposed £89.82 increase from the county council.

Council tax represents more than half of the money needed to run the council and its services – more than £24m in 2026/27, the Local Democracy Reporting Service says.

The meeting was told the budget would be balanced without the need to dig into the council's reserves – although it will draw on £580,000 of treasury management income.

Deputy leader Chris Hobbs said: "There is no fat in this budget, and once more we rely on income from the interest earned on savings."

Leader Robert Eggleston said local authorities were "living in difficult times".