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Authorities take action over council tax

Adam Williams
Written By:
Adam Williams
Posted:
Updated:
09/03/2017

Local authorities are increasingly taking low-income households to court over non-payment of council tax.

A paper published by the TUC said there had been a rise in the number of households with low incomes being taken to court.

It said in the most recent year there were 500,000 more court summonses in England, something it blames on a reduction in council tax support.

The report said low income working-age households had lost £490 million worth of tax relief in the 2013/14 financial year. This affected 2.5 million households.

One-in-seven local authorities have plans to cut council tax support in the new tax year, it added. Only a small minority of local authorities retained full council tax support for those on low incomes.

The number of court cases in areas with major cuts was 30%, compared to 9% in areas where low income families were supported.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “Slashing council tax support has been one of the government’s cruellest cuts. It was foolish for ministers to think that families who can’t afford to heat their homes can pay new tax bills for hundreds of pounds. And it is heartless for them to stand by as the poorest families are hauled through the courts and harassed by bailiffs.

“If anyone is to be hit with higher taxes it should be the fat cats in the boardrooms and those corporations that are dodging paying their fair share, not the poorest working-age households in the UK.”


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