There is bad news on the
way for local residents who currently get Council Tax Benefit.
Localising support for council tax
The government is proposing to localise support for council tax from
2013–14. CTB will be abolished, and local authorities in England – and the
Scottish and Welsh governments – must design their own systems for rebating
council tax to low-income families. Entitlement rates for pensioners in England
will still be set nationally and maintained at their existing level.
Cutting support for
council tax
As well as localising support for council tax, the government is
also planning to cut funding for it by 10 per cent, giving each local authority
a grant based on 90 per cent of what would have been spent on CTB in that area
– meaning a larger cash funding cut in areas where CTB spending is higher.
Central government is
forcing each local authority to come up with its own scheme for Council Tax
benefit, and abolishing the national scheme. Brent will be publishing its
proposals for consultation in early June. These are being rushed through
for implementation in April 2013, which effectively means that Councils will
have had little time to respond and consult on the government plans by the end
of this year.
The April 2013 deadline
means that the necessary scheme design
and implementation is kept to an almost impossibly short time table.
This is just another example
of Government making decisions that Local Councils have to implement and
probably will get the blame for.
Please pass this on so as many people as
possible know what’s happening.
Fryent Councillors.
