The wards that will be hit hardest by cuts in Council Tax Support Scheme. Budget cuts, rise in Council Tax and cuts in Council Tax Support will be voted on tonight.

 

Working age claimants of Council Tax Support bu ward

Earlier this month Wembley Matters wrote about Brent Council proposals on  cuts to the Council Tax Support Scheme LINK. Although those changes, which demand that everyone pay something towards Council Tax despite low incomes and the Cost of Living Crisis, were rejected in the public consultation, the Labour Group will approve them at tonight's Full Council. Brent Citizens Advice Bureau tabled a paper that showed the poorest would be hit hardest and that is evidenced by the ward breakdown above,

The cuts amounts to £8m but a £1.5m hardship fund has been proposed. In their budget proposal Lib Dems will propose that this be doubled to £3m.

Cllr Lorber, Lib Dem leader, told Wembley Matters:

It will be interesting how the Councillors from these wards will react and vote.

The changes have of course been implemented in very short time. They could have started discussing this in April 2024. The consultation was pointless as they already decided what they were going to do and no views would be taken into account.

The result is that many residents will be charged Council Tax for the first time or will see a very high increase. The officers predict that  many will not be able to pay and debts will simply rise - and many will need to be written off. In the meantime the individuals concerned will end up with more worry and more stress.

Councillors were presented with this far too late and needless to say when I went to Cabinet no one was listening.

The overall impact on the claimants is £8 million. They are setting up a £1.5 million hardship fund but this is not enough.

The key point is that the claimants have simply not been given enough time to rearrange their affairs. Finding jobs is hard and the extra charges (£600 a year for some) will hit many as a bombshell on 1 April 2025.

 

In our view the changes should have been introduced in a staggered way rather than the massive hit implemented immediately. 

We are therefore proposing that the support is doubled this year to £3 million to provide some help to as many people as possible.

In the past rather than vote against the Budget and Council Tax motion, dissident Labour councillors have left the Council Chamber before the vote is taken, and returned once next business is underway. Tonight this might well be what happens when the Council Tax Support Scheme is discussed.

You can watch the meeting on Brent Live from 6pm HERE

The Budget and Council Tax is Item 6.

Review of the Council Tax Support Scheme Item 8,