Oxford City Council confirms tax rises to residents’ bills
Council tax will increase by just under 3%
Oxford City Council has today confirmed in their budget that council tax will rise by 2.99%, whilst also introducing double tax for anyone with a second home.
That is an increase of £10.36 per year, or 20 pence per week, for the average band D household, which they say is “good value for money”.
Deputy Leader and and Cabinet Member for Finance, Cllr Ed Turner says, “It's a very difficult time in local government”.
He said: “Unfortunately, local government remains underfunded. We've had a slight cash injection under the new Labour government, but not as much money as any of us would have liked to have seen. Still, we're taking the opportunity to invest in our services.”
The council has also confirmed that they will be raising the fees for brown bin collections, whilst adding a “relatively modest” increase to some parking charges excluding the park and ride.
Cllr Turner said: “There are things which we'd like to do, that we can't do, but we think we're doing our best to protect services, particularly for the most vulnerable.”
Homelessness
City Council says they are building 1,473 homes over a 10-year development programme, of which more than 1,000 social houses will be sold to the Council.
“We're needing to put people up in hotels because we simply haven't got anywhere else for people to go. Main thing there is, of course, building new homes.
“We've got money in our budget for really significant investment in new council housing, but we’re also trying to get hold of alternative accommodation in the interim.”
Double council tax for second home owners
This year the council has decided to introduce double council tax for anyone that owns a second home in the city.
It’s estimated more than 600 homes will be forced to pay the new rate as they fall within the city council's boundary.
Cllr Turner says, “it does seem to us only right that if people have the luxury of a second home, they should make a greater contribution to local services.”
He added: "This isn't about landlords. This is about people who have a holiday home in Oxford. For example, your main residence might be in London, but you have a little weekend pad in Oxford - then you'll be asked to pay double council tax.”
Investing in local facilities
The council say that “with the extra money” they are able to invest more into various local facilities.
Cllr Turner said: “We're freezing pitch hire fees for sports teams and proposing to replace some football goals on the Leys.
“Generally, just trying to do what we can to make our area sort of cleaner, happier, safer for people to enjoy their free time.”