News: Frank De Luc, The vote

The annual council tax debate this week will set the budget for Brighton and Hove and shape the election battle to come

The amount that we pay in council tax in the coming year will be decided on Thursday (26 February). It is decided at the annual budget meeting of Brighton and Hove City Council. It is a decision that rests with all 54 councillors who obliged to set a legal budget. It gives them less room for manoeuvre than some would like.
There are three options on the table. The minority Green administration wants to put up bills by 5.9%. This is above inflation but, they are quick to point out, below the level of rises agreed when Labour was in charge. With 20 councillors, out of the 54, they are short of a majority.
Their position is complicated by the fact that the local party recently voted to reject its own budget proposals. The concern is over the level of spending cuts that will follow even if council tax rises by 5.9%. So the Green group of councillors looks as though it may be split on this high-profile vote.

The Conservatives want the council tax to be frozen. The coalition government provides some financial compensation for those local authorities that freeze council tax – £1.2 million next year for Brighton and Hove. But it doesn’t make up for the long-term effect of having a reduced tax base.
Labour advocates a 2% rise. This is known as the threshold increase because a rise in council tax above the 2% threshold will trigger a referendum. Locally this would be held on the same day as the local elections and the general election. Labour has said that a 2% rise is reasonable while a 5.9% would be less affordable for poorer people.
The party also believes that a referendum would be an unnecessary extra cost. The total is likely to be a six-figure sum. And they believe that councillors were elected to make exactly these sort of decisions.

“If voters believe the outcome is important enough, they will bother with the ballot”

While the Conservatives as a group oppose the idea of a referendum usually, some believe that it would have its benefits this year. They believe that voters would turn down the 5.9% rise. But if they didn’t, the council would have a bigger budget.
The Greens’ position is; “Let the voters decide.” A referendum – the mechanism favoured by the government for above-threshold rises – would at least allow politicians and officials to know that the rise – or freeze – in council tax bills commanded reasonably widespread support.
One thing the parties agree on is that turnout is likely to be reasonably high – and a referendum would add to the interest. The Scottish referendum last year showed that if voters believe that the outcome is important enough and they can influence the result, they will bother with the ballot.
The difference in the amount most people will pay is negligible whether council tax bills are frozen or rise by 2% or 5.9%. Those politicians emphasising this point often cite a weekly sum while those highlighting the difference will cite the annual amount.
The difference in the council’s £750 million budget is another matter. The difference is – at most – likely to be £5.5 million. It may be less than 1% of the annual spend but the impact will be felt by real people. The fear among some is that the people who will feel the effect of spending cuts are those most in need of the services and support provided by the council.

A year ago councillors were unable to agree the budget at the annual meeting. Rather than negotiate through the night, they held a second meeting soon after. Few people like to compromise but unless someone gives ground the council tax won’t be set.
If that happens, the
government will send in commissioners. They will almost certainly freeze the council tax, make cuts with less local knowledge and sensitivity and render our councillors and some of our officials irrelevant. Even most Conservatives would not want this option. It all adds to
the pressure to reach an agreement at Hove Town Hall on Thursday.