News that council tax could rise by 5% in Nottingham city has got lots of you talking online. Nottingham City Council has announced it is planning to hike the tax by the maximum amount allowed as part of a series of measures to tackle a funding gap of more than £30million next year.
The controversial proposals would see an increase of 4.99% for the next two years, starting in April 2023. The Labour-led authority said it faced "difficult decisions".
On our website and social media channels, many of our readers have shared their thoughts. In the comments section on this story. Jasonbourne said: "We keep paying for the council and Government mistakes. This country is messed up."
Read more: Nottingham City Council tax hike would 'hit a lot of people'
dd8 commented: "No surprise there. Something has got to give, and that is always the taxpayer."
Salvatori said: "We'll be paying more money for services that are being cut back. Absolute robbery!"
Foxinabox added: "People are cold, they are hungry, now this. It's not unexpected but honestly where on earth do they think we are to find the money?"
Others called for the council to cut costs in management. On our Facebook page, meanwhile, there was a lot of debate about this issue.
Julie Foster said: "It (council tax) is nearly as much as some mortgages and for what. We don't get nothing out of all that money we pay. Oh yes, bins emptied."
Nigel Cragg echoed the thoughts of many. "So where do they think the council taxpayers get this extra money from, on top of being squeezed with extra to find for heating bills?" he asked.
Sophie Epton pointed out that council tax is 'increasing everywhere'. David Iremonger added: "People don't seem to realise that the worst is yet to come."
Council blames Government cuts
The council has also announced it intends to cut 110-full time equivalent jobs. And it plans to review fees and charges at car parks, leisure centres and museums, withdrawing the wheelchair hire service at the Victoria Centre and stopping the collection of household bins put out on the wrong day.
The new savings proposed for next year are so far are worth £29m. Councillor Adele Williams, the council's deputy leader and portfolio holder for finance, said: "Most councils up and down the country are facing significant financial difficulties, and once again we are faced with some really difficult decisions about how we balance our budget next year.
"We have also looked in this budget process for ways in which we can become more efficient and effective with each pound we spend for Nottingham. Demand continues to grow for vital services such as adult social care, which now makes up over a third of the council's entire budget.
"Since 2010 we have had to make more than £300m of savings to our budgets. With vastly diminished Government grants, we have got to seriously consider the 5% council tax increase allowed by Government, even though this wouldn’t raise enough to properly meet local needs, and it would sadly place a further burden on local people who we know are already struggling with the cost of living crisis. For the vast majority of city residents, this would equate to between £1.25 and £1.46 more per week. When Nottingham households have lost out on average almost £700 of national funding since 2010, this rise is something we have been forced to consider."
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