New figures out today reveal that council tax in Wales remains lower than in England.
This was published under the 2016 to 2021 administration of the Welsh Government
The Welsh Government release shows that average Band D council tax for Wales in 2017-18 stands at £1,420, £171 less than the average Band D in England, which stands at £1,591.
The average band D council tax rise in Wales is also lower than the figure for England based on estimates published by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy. The average increase in England in 2017-18 is 4.0% and the increase in Wales is 3.3%.
Through the Council Tax Reduction Scheme (CTRS), the Welsh Government has also maintained its support to almost 300,000 households who need assistance in meeting their council tax bills. Of these approximately 220,000 pay no council tax at all.
Welcoming today’s figures, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government Mark Drakeford said:
“Councils here are facing some real financial challenges but these latest figures show we are protecting local government from the worst of the cuts handed down by Westminster and, in doing so, protecting the taxpayer; a situation that has not been replicated on the other side of the border.
“In 2017-18, we are increasing funding for local government by £10 million compared to 2016-17. Under the funding floor we introduced in the Local Government Settlement, no council will have to manage on less than 99.5% of the cash provided to them last year, and most will have more.
“While our Council Tax Reduction Scheme (CTRS) is playing a key role in tackling poverty in Wales we’re currently looking at how we can make the system fairer for those who less able to contribute. We’ll make a further announcement on our plans during the course of this Assembly term.”