Wandsworth Council is proposing to raise resident bills by as much as 160 per cent, following Government cuts to funding. The move has been accused of being one of the steepest council tax increases ever seen.
Funding shortfall and proposed rise
The council said it faces a projected 40 per cent reduction in cash from central government, the highest planned borrowing levels in its history, and reserves forecast to run out within three years if urgent action is not taken. Labour has accused the borough's Tory administration of planning Britain's biggest ever council tax increase.
A Wandsworth Tory spokesman said: "The Labour Government is slashing 40 per cent of Wandsworth Council's funding, leaving us with the worst cash loss of any council in the country."
Political context and by-election
Wandsworth is traditionally a Tory flagship council but was won by Labour for the first time at the 2022 local elections. At the most recent polls in May, the Tories secured 29 seats, one short of a majority. Labour has 28 councillors.
A by-election on August 27 could decide which party definitively runs the local authority. Wandsworth Labour leader Simon Hogg said: "When Labour ran Wandsworth Council we had the lowest council tax in the country, the highest reserves of any neighbouring borough and no external debt."
Comparisons and exemptions
Wandsworth and Westminster currently set the lowest and second lowest council tax rates in the country, with Band D homes paying £1,020 and £1,047 respectively. Under Labour's Fairer Funding Review, six town halls, including Wandsworth, will see the largest cuts to funding settlements and will be exempt from the 5 per cent cap on raising council tax from next year.
Westminster Council has written to 200,000 residents as it plans next year's budget in the wake of an "unprecedented" £100 million drop in central government funding over three years. Last year Worcestershire Council was given special permission to hike bills by 9 per cent, and the year before Newham set a London record with an 8 per cent increase.
