Council Tax bills in North Yorkshire have been approved a 2.99% general rise and another 2% for social care. Authorities with responsibility for adult social care, such as North Yorkshire County Council, are expected to increase council tax by either 3.99% or 4.99% in April 2018.
The decision was made by the council executive and it will be further debated by the full council in two weeks time. The County Council has managed to make savings of about £142 million since the start of the decade and a further £44 million in savings is required by 2021/2022. £33.6 million of this money has been identified and set before the Executive for approval, leaving £10.7 million still to be found.
This is what the County Councillor and North Yorkshire’s Deputy Leader and Executive Member for Finance, Gareth Dadd, said about this decision: “I propose this council tax rise very reluctantly. We must do what we can to protect services for the vulnerable, the elderly and the young. They are fewer than, for example, those using the roads, but it is our duty to do the right thing by them in a civilised society. We must protect the vulnerable. On the other side of coin, we understand that with increasing demand for our services the burden of these costs is shifting onto the taxpayers. North Yorkshire pays more council tax, gets less government funding and has higher costs due to the delivery of services across England’s largest rural authority. The county’s taxpayers should be assured that we will continue our campaign for fairer funding from government for large rural areas like North Yorkshire. We will be making our voice heard at a national level.”
The council will consider the Executive’s recommendation at the meeting taking place on the 21st of February.
