Sandwell councillor says tax increase needed to protect vulnerable

Tax payers in Sandwell face a council tax increase of nearly four per cent despite the borough getting extra funding from central government.

The tax increase will see bills for Band D homes go up to £1,457 a year – before charges for the police and fire services are included.

The authority said it would mean an extra 72p to 96p per week for most residents.

Councillor Wasim Ali, cabinet member for core services at Sandwell Council, told the borough’s cabinet that councils nationally were having to impose an extra two per cent charge to meet the cost of social care.

He said: “The good news is that for the first time in ten years we haven’t had to cut the funding.“

But he added: “The Government has once again shifted the burden of adult social care on to local tax payers by assuming all local councils will implement a council tax increase of 3.99 per cent for next year.

“We don’t want to do this and we strongly believe that a national solution is needed for adult social care.”

The announcement came after the newly-elected Conservative MP for West Bromwich West, Shaun Bailey, last week criticised the council tax rise saying it will hit Sandwell residents.

Councillor Ali, who represents Smethwick, said: “Excluding council tax, this (government) increase would amount to £11.7m, or 4.3 per cent.

“Almost all of this increase can only be spent on social care services.”

Saying while it was still welcomed, he pointed out the council gets £180 million less each year compared to 2010, adding: “The increase this year still isn’t enough to meet the cost of delivering social care services.

“We don’t think that local council taxpayers should be forced to pay more to fund the social care system but we also know that there simply isn’t enough money in the system to meet the needs of our most vulnerable people.”