The PM had said that he would have frozen bills if he had been in power in 2023, but now average Band D council tax for a home in England is set to jump by £109 a year from £2,171 to £2,280 a fifth higher than in 2021-22 when the typical bill was £1,898.
A Tory spokesman declared as the bill levels were confirmed across the country yesterday: "This is Starmer's day of shame. It is clear that taxes are only going one way on his watch because of decisions he's made."
Bills for a Band D property range from £998 in Wandsworth, South London to £2,671 in Rutland in the East Midlands. An analysis also found average tax in Greater London is 18% lower than in the North East.
Caroline Abrahams, of the Age UK charity, warned that the "cost of living crisis is far from over".
She added: "The expected rise in council tax from April will no doubt add to the financial woes many older people continue to face. We're still hearing from thousands of older people struggling to afford the basics as everything keeps going up."
Kevin Hollinrake, the Shadow Local Government Secretary, said that Chancellor Rachel Reeves's decision to raise employers' National Insurance contributions had forced up costs for councils, despite funding to offset the extra expense.
He said: "This Labour Government is driving up costs for councils across the country with their jobs tax...We are the only ones standing up to a dreadful Labour Government determined to crush businesses, raise your taxes and trash the economy. This has been engineered by Labour, who have left town halls to foot the blame when record bills hit the doormat."
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, speaking at the launch of her local elections campaign, pledged that the party would deliver better value for money, saying: "[At] local level Conservative councils consistently deliver better services at a lower rate...If you vote for something else you will get something much worse."
Elliot Keck, of the TaxPayers' Alliance pressure group, said bill rises show councils had failed in the "desperate need to drive up standards" and he attacked "stagnant productivity" which he claims is "endemic".
Claiming this is "forcing councils to reach deeper into the pockets of local taxpayers just to stand still", he added: "Town halls across England need to spend the next financial year imposing rigorous key performance indicators and performance reviews for all staff to ensure there is no one failing to pull their weight."
Maxwell Marlow, of the Adam Smith Institute think-tank, pushed for reform, saying: "The uptick in council tax is regrettable, and will squeeze households' budgets even further. But it's not a surprise they're doing this.
"For decades, Whitehall has placed more and more responsibility on local authorities that should have been given to the significantly more efficient private sector.
"Local government finances need an urgent and systematic review."
Barry Lewis, from the County Councils Network group for local authorities, said people in large towns and cities often pay far less tax, adding: "Some of those urban councils are in a position to freeze council tax or scale back service reductions."
Reliant
He said this was due to the Government focusing funds there at the expense of county areas.
Town halls in the latter areas have lost more central funding ...
A Tory spokesman declared as the bill levels were confirmed across the country yesterday: "This is Starmer's day of shame. It is clear that taxes are only going one way on his watch because of decisions he's made."
Bills for a Band D property range from £998 in Wandsworth, South London to £2,671 in Rutland in the East Midlands. An analysis also found average tax in Greater London is 18% lower than in the North East.
Caroline Abrahams, of the Age UK charity, warned that the "cost of living crisis is far from over".
She added: "The expected rise in council tax from April will no doubt add to the financial woes many older people continue to face. We're still hearing from thousands of older people struggling to afford the basics as everything keeps going up."
Kevin Hollinrake, the Shadow Local Government Secretary, said that Chancellor Rachel Reeves's decision to raise employers' National Insurance contributions had forced up costs for councils, despite funding to offset the extra expense.
He said: "This Labour Government is driving up costs for councils across the country with their jobs tax...We are the only ones standing up to a dreadful Labour Government determined to crush businesses, raise your taxes and trash the economy. This has been engineered by Labour, who have left town halls to foot the blame when record bills hit the doormat."
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, speaking at the launch of her local elections campaign, pledged that the party would deliver better value for money, saying: "[At] local level Conservative councils consistently deliver better services at a lower rate...If you vote for something else you will get something much worse."
Elliot Keck, of the TaxPayers' Alliance pressure group, said bill rises show councils had failed in the "desperate need to drive up standards" and he attacked "stagnant productivity" which he claims is "endemic".
Claiming this is "forcing councils to reach deeper into the pockets of local taxpayers just to stand still", he added: "Town halls across England need to spend the next financial year imposing rigorous key performance indicators and performance reviews for all staff to ensure there is no one failing to pull their weight."
Maxwell Marlow, of the Adam Smith Institute think-tank, pushed for reform, saying: "The uptick in council tax is regrettable, and will squeeze households' budgets even further. But it's not a surprise they're doing this.
"For decades, Whitehall has placed more and more responsibility on local authorities that should have been given to the significantly more efficient private sector.
"Local government finances need an urgent and systematic review."
Barry Lewis, from the County Councils Network group for local authorities, said people in large towns and cities often pay far less tax, adding: "Some of those urban councils are in a position to freeze council tax or scale back service reductions."
Reliant
He said this was due to the Government focusing funds there at the expense of county areas.
Town halls in the latter areas have lost more central funding ...
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Daily Express (Digital) - 1 Issue, March 21, 2025