Authority confirms plans for 2.99% council tax rise

Leicestershire County Council has confirmed plans to increase its council tax by 2.99% from April.

The Reform UK-led authority said it would be the first time in 12 years that the council had not raised its precept by the 4.99% maximum allowed under capping rules.

The council, however, said the move would leave it with a gap in its budget, which it would need to plug using £18m of reserves.

Cabinet member for resources Harrison Fowler said: "We are not blindly putting the maximum increase on the residents of the county purely because that's the way it has always been done."

During a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Fowler said the council was still facing both external and internal pressures on its budget and was in a "very difficult" financial position.

"As much as we want to freeze council tax, that's not a position we are in right now," Fowler added.

"By the same score, it's not something we are prepared to do to put it up to the maximum."

Officials said the 2.99% increase would raise £12.9m extra in revenue in 2026-27.

The budget still needs to be approved at full council, on 18 February, and Reform UK does not hold a political majority on the authority, so it will need the support of some opposition members.

Deborah Taylor, who leads the Conservative opposition group, said it was not sustainable in the long-term to balance the books using reserves.

Reform UK said the proposed council tax rise was below inflation and would be among the lowest precept increases of any upper tier council in England.

The party commissioned consultants Newton to carry out a efficiency review - costing £1.4m - of all aspects of the council's spending in November.

It said that review had already identified £4.5m of savings.

Council leader Dan Harrison said the review would eventually find "millions" more in savings, but he would not put a figure on what he hoped it would achieve.

If approved, the council tax rise would mean an increase of about £50 a year for a Band D property.

The largest share of county residents' council tax bills will go to the county council, but smaller portions will go to district councils and to fund Leicestershire Police and Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service.

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