Council tax for the average household will rise by £107 after local governments have been given permission to raise the tax by six per cent to local town halls.
The announcements have been made by Communities Secretary Sajid Javid. The police will also be allowed to charge households an extra £12 per year, the minister has revealed.
How much will your council tax increase by?
Council tax of every band will increase by the same percentage.
Band A is the cheapest band, while those in band H currently pay the most at £3,182. However, this will go up substantially by almost £200 per year.
Council tax rises per band for 2018
A – £64 – new rate = £1125
B – £74 – new rate = £1311
C – £85 – new rate = £1499
D – £95 – new rate = £1698
E – £117 – new rate = £2074
F – £138 – new rate = £2448
G – £159 – new rate = £2823
H – £191 – new rate = £3385
The TaxPayer’s Alliance has hit back at the revelations, and John O’Connell told Express.co.uk: “With wage growth stagnating and the cost of living on the rise, it beggars belief that politicians are asking for powers to take even more of people’s hard-earned money.
“Council tax has already nearly doubled in the last decade so it isn’t fair to ask residents to plug the gaps in their finances, especially when we know that council tax already hits the poorest hardest.”
What does your council tax pay for?
Council tax is how most councils make the majority of their income.
It goes towards services such a transport links, buses and trains, road maintenance, social care, social housing and keeping parks and streets clean.
What affects the council tax band you are in?
Your council tax depends on a valuation of your house, the Government revealed on their website.
It said: “The value is based on the price the property would have sold for on the open market on 1 April 1991 in England and 1 April 2003 in Wales.”
Houses worth less than £40,000 are in band A, while houses worth more than £330,000 are in band H.
The Department for Communities and Local Government said: “This settlement strikes a balance between giving councils the ability to make decisions to meet pressures and ensure that our most vulnerable in society get the support they need while protecting residents against excessive council tax bill rises.”