"Use £2million to freeze council tax" (Lewisham Liberal Democrats)

Lewisham Liberal Democrats <info@lewishamlibdems.org.uk>

"Use £2million to freeze council tax"

February 26, 2009 8:56 PM

Alex Feakes will propose freezing Lewisham's council tax

The Mayor of Lewisham's plan to put up council tax by 2.5% has angered local Liberal Democrats who say he should freeze the tax and help Lewisham residents, who are already facing bigger bills and lower incomes as a result of the recession.

"The money raised by forcing up council tax is to sit in the Council's bank until they decide what to do with it," says Cllr Chris Maines, Leader of the Lib Dem councillors. "We should freeze the tax and help every household in the borough, all of whom are suffering the effects of the recession."

Liberal Democrats have renewed their calls to scrap the council tax. "The council tax is the unfairest tax of all," says Cllr Maines. "Those on low incomes have to spend far too much of their salaries on this tax. Those on fixed incomes, such as pensioners, face increases every year that are higher than the increases in their pensions! This is not right or fair.

"The group must seriously hit by the current economic crisis are pensioners reliant on interest from a small nest egg in a building society - our plan would help them directly."

Cllr Alex Feakes, the Chair of the Council's Public Accounts Committee, will move the council tax freeze proposal at Monday's Council meeting.

Cllr Feakes says, "The Mayor is creating a fund for pet projects that might help some people hit by the economic crisis, but a zero increase will help thousands of hard-pressed families across Lewisham.

"The Mayor is proposing a rent increase for tenants of Lewisham Homes of 6% so a council tax increase for those hard working families will be a double whammy.

"It is clear in these extraordinary times that we should try to stimulate the ailing economy and tax increases do not help give families any extra spending power," said Cllr Feakes.