LOCAL authorities are likely to increase council taxes by up to 3% from April, according to a senior local government figure.
Stephen McCabe, leader of Inverclyde Council and a spokesman for young people at the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla), said there was no appetite among councillors for bigger tax hikes.
He made the comments after Finance Secretary Kate Forbes ended a council tax freeze for all 32 councils prompting speculation from the Tories of "massive" rises.
Stephen McCabe, leader of Inverclyde Council and a spokesman for young people at the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (Cosla), told the Sunday Times that while council leaders were “appalled” by the government’s budget settlement unveiled last week, the idea that councils would “hammer people with huge council tax increases when the cost of living was about to go through the roof” was a step too far.
READ MORE: Scottish Budget: Councils plan 'full-frontal attack' amid tension with Holyrood
He predicted that nearly all councils would agree to rises of up to 3%, with some continuing to freeze the tax before next year’s local elections, although this would require cuts to services.
He said: “There is no money in the settlement to pay for local council wage settlements, nor to cover the employers’ national insurance costs announced by the UK government.”
In a 3% rise band D charges would rise from £1386 to £1428 in Glasgow, from £1377 to £1419 in Aberdeen and from £1332 to £1372 in the Highlands.
In Edinburgh band D bills would rise from £1339 to £1380 while tax in the highest band, H, would rise from £3280 to £3378.
Cosla children's spokesman Councillor Stephen McCabe
Forbes ended the freeze and lifted an earlier cap on council tax rises as she set out the draft Scottish budget at Holyrood, the first as part of an SNP-Green Government, on Thursday.
The Finance Secretary last year froze council tax at a cost of £90m to help families struggling through the depths of the Covid pandemic.
In this year's statement to Holyrood, she failed to mention that the freeze and cap on rises would be lifted.
However, the 148-page budget document spelt out the policy.
It said: “For 2022/23, councils will have complete flexibility to set the council tax rate that is appropriate for their local authority area.
“In setting council tax rates, we expect councils to take full account of local needs and of the impacts on household budgets of the decisions they make.”
She told MSPs the measures in her budget would help tackle child poverty, support economic recovery and take important steps towards a greener economy as part of the fight against climate change.
In the budget debate, Forbes was accused of laying the ground for council tax hikes by Tory MSP Murdo Fraser who pointed out the funding for local authorities will be at a virtual standstill next year, rising just £40m to £11.1billion.
He said: “That represents a substantial real terms cut. Doesn’t this make it inevitable that we will see a substantial council tax increases for hard-pressed households as a result of this Finance Secretary’s choices?”
Forbes said there was “real terms growth” in the settlement for local government and protected the core budget “in cash terms”.
The Scottish Government froze council tax in 2008/09 in a policy that lasted until 2016/17.
From 2018/19, the Government capped rises at 3%, rising to 4.8% in 2020/21, before freezing it again in 2021/22.
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