Thanks to a deal the Scottish Executive has made with Cosla, local authorities will now have to freeze Council Tax — or else.
The SNP’s long-term proposal is to get rid of Council Tax altogether and replace it with a Local Income Tax. Seems like a good idea. Except that the SNP version of Local Income Tax gives local authorities absolutely no power to set the rate. I still don’t understand what’s “local” about Local Income Tax version SNP. Local rates where the rates are set by the centre? Don’t get it. It seems to be “local” in name only.
For a party that is supposed to be in favour of removing power from the centre, the SNP seems awfy keen on reducing the autonomy of local authorities and putting the power all back to the centre. I guess as long as the centre is in Edinburgh rather than London, it must be okay.
This is consistent with the SNP’s wider goal of independence… this move is calculated to further incense those of us who pay tax in England, adding momentum to English calls for Scotland to stand in its own feet.
The Daily Mail/Evening Standard are already whipping their readers into a frenzy over council tax rises and none of the outcomes here are, in the grand scheme of things, bad for the SNP. Either Labour tries to appease English voters by tinkering with the Barnett formula or the Conservatives continue to push English nationalism – both help Alex.
Duncan, surely the removal of ringfencing, and freeing local authorities to spend the cash how we want, is granting us more power than Labour and the Liberals ever did?
I see that Edinburgh Cuntcil have decided they aren’t willing to step up to the plate re the Cuntcil Tax freeze… They might or might not be able to afford it, they say… How about sacking a collection of these freeloading bums until they can afford it.