Following the recent Government announcement that local authorities can increase Council Tax by 2% to pay for adult social care, Salford Council looks set to implement the rise from April this year.
A Council finance report states that "The City Mayor is minded to take up this option", adding "This will generate £1.64million in additional resources.
"Discussions are on-going as to how any funding will be allocated" the report states "but it should be noted that it is less than the amount included in our budget projections for the increased costs associated with the implementation of the National Living Wage which comes into force in April 2016."
Salford Council already pays a Living Wage of £8.25 per hour to its own employees, so the extra revenue looks set to be spent with outside private companies that don't currently pay the Tory Government's Living Wage of £7.20 per hour and will be adding the costs to Council contracts from April.
Meanwhile, a separate Salford Council finance report reveals that during the year 2014/15, 33,000 summonses were issued resulting in 20,000 households with Liability Orders being granted at a court hearing. During that year, bailiffs collected £1.5million for the Council.
In April 2013, Salford Council made everyone in the city of working age pay at least 12% of their Council Tax bill, no matter how low their income. From April 2015 this increased to 15%, a rise of 3%, above inflation and above any rises in benefit payments. 17,700 people were affected by the new policy, brought on by Tory Government cuts to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme and implemented by the Council (see previous Salford Star article - click here).
A Salford Council `community impact report' at the time stated that the increase in Council Tax payments "will reduce the disposable income of many on low incomes, increasing socio-economic inequality..."
Their `disposable income' is about to get even more `reduced'...
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