Almost all London boroughs are planning to increase council tax bills by the maximum amount allowed by the Government.
Thirty of the 33 boroughs in the capital expect to increase their share of bills by 4.99 per cent from April, according to research by The Standard.
Newham, one of several boroughs in financial dire straits, has received special permission from Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner to increase its demand by 8.99 per cent.
Under the Government’s spending controls, boroughs are only able to increase their bills by more than five per cent by holding a referendum of local taxpayers or by obtaining special permission from ministers.
Only Kensington and Chelsea and Wandsworth have chosen not to seek the maximum increase.
Kensington and Chelsea has proposed a four per cent increase while Wandsworth said it would only seek a two per cent rise in bills to cover the mounting cost of adult social care.
London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan has proposed a four per cent increase in his “precept”, which helps to fund the Metropolitan police, Transport for London, the London fire brigade and City Hall.
This will add £18.98 onto his demand – which is levied on all households across London – taking it to £490.38 a year for a band D billpayer.
Overall, 22 of the 33 boroughs will issue average bills in excess of £2,000 a year – seven of them for the first time.
The boroughs breaking the £2,000 barrier will be: Barnet, Bromley, Ealing, Greenwich, Hounslow, Islington and Merton.
The average increase across London will be £91 at band D, meaning the average amount paid by households will be £1,996.
The Government is due to publish an official list of all 2025/26 council tax demands in England on March 20.
The Standard’s research found that Kingston will issue the capital’s highest bills, at £2,488, while Wandsworth will again be the lowest, at £990.
Wandsworth is able to call on sizeable reserves – currently estimated at £193m – to help subsidise its services and reduce the pressure to raise council tax.
In comparison, Kingston has about £19m in reserves.
Wandsworth also takes far more in income from business rates (£104m) than Kingston (£26m).
Despite its wealth, Wandsworth will receive about £29m from the Government in “revenue support grant” in 2025/26 – the 24th biggest amount in the country – while Kingston will receive just £300,000.
Neighbouring Richmond, which also sets a high council tax, will only receive £200,000 in revenue support grants from the Government.
Newham will receive the third highest revenue support grant in England (£46.3m), followed by Southwark in fourth place (£45.8m), Hackney in fifth (£44.5m), Tower Hamlets in eighth (£42.7m) and Lambeth in ninth (£40.5m).
Hillingdon, the last of the 33 boroughs to announce its budget plans, will remain the cheapest of the outer London boroughs.
But – like other councils – it warned of the additional costs it faced due to the Government’s changes in the amount of National Insurance to be paid by employers.
It said a Government grant to reimburse the NI hike only covered about 80 per cent of the extra cost, leaving it £800,000 out of pocket.
The council also fears that contractors will hike their bills – adding to its expenditure.
Hillingdon is now considering whether to charge residents to have their garden waste collected.
Seven boroughs - Lambeth, Newham, Havering, Croydon, Enfield, Barnet and Haringey- have asked the Government for exceptional financial support to stave off bankruptcy.
