27 February, 2004

At yesterday's full council meeting St Edmundsbury Borough Council decided to increase Council Tax for a Band D taxpayer by £9.18 a year, or 18p a week (6.5%). This means the average household will pay £150.30 to St Edmundsbury in 2004/05.

St Edmundsbury provides a wide range of services for £2.89 a week (from April 2004 - it's currently £2.71 a week), including emptying bins, kerbside recycling schemes, removing abandoned cars, provision of markets, car parks, open spaces, cycle routes, public toilets, museums, parks, leisure centres, youth activities and family events. The council is responsible for development control, some highways matters and a benefits service at three offices. It also encourages tourism and economic development to build the prosperity of the borough, carries out kitchen hygiene inspections, investigates noise and pollution problems and gives grants to a wide range of organisations. Working with partners, the council helps to cut crime and improve health.

St Edmundsbury collects Council Tax on behalf of Suffolk County Council and Suffolk Police. More than three-quarters of the money is passed on to the county council (in 2004/05 the county council share will be £17.78 a week, equivalent to £924.48 a year for a Band D taxpayer).

St Edmundsbury Council Leader, Cllr John Griffiths, said:

"We have worked very hard to strike a responsible balance between maintaining the quality of services that St Edmundsbury provides and minimising the impact on our Council Tax Payers.

Much remains to be done, and having kept our share of this year's Council Tax to less than £3 per week (reducing the increase by 35% from last year), we will be taking a detailed look at all our services and activities to see where we can make further savings.

I would stress that, without the new legal obligations and pressures placed upon us and over which we have no control, the increase in our Council Tax this year is below the rate of inflation. Even including these 'unfunded pressures', it is 75% less than the projected increase only ten months ago."                                                                    

ENDS