Email to TWI: SBC levies higher council tax than posh London.
Posted by thewhitbyindependent on April 14, 2011
indefatigable Whitby campaigner (and Banjo king) Richard Ineson asks some awkward questions of our Council overlords. As the 2011-12 bills land, right-thinking residents might think he has a point:
Dear Sir,
Here are a few figures which local Council Tax payers’ may find illuminating, I have a particular interest in this very unfair tax as I pay, square metre for square metre, the highest Council Tax of anyone in the United Kingdom.
The Council Tax levied in Whitby this year, 2011 -2012 is as follows
Band B in which my house is listed £1229.50.
Band D which is the supposed national average £1580. 80
Band H which is the highest band £3161.60
In Filey The figures are as follows:-
Band B £1226.77 Band D £1577.29 Band H £3154.58
In Scarborough :-
Band B £1194.22 Band D £1535. 44 Band H £3070.88.
Am I alone in thinking it strange that the cheapest Council Tax is levied in Scarborough?
But there is more, the unfairness of this tax is well demonstrated when we compare our local Council Taxes with those levied in more prosperous areas such as Westminster, and Kensington and Chelsea, where we find that in Westminster the tax is as follows :-
Band B £534.82 Band D £687 62 Band H £1375 24
And in Kensington and Chelsea :-
Band B £839. 31 Band D £1079.12 Band H £2158.24
And yet more, my house is 2.78 metres wide, it has no garden, nowhere to hang any washing and nowhere to house a refuse bin; for this magnificence I am required to pay £1229.50 this financial year.
This contrasts rather sharply with 18 -19, Kensington Palace Gardens, reputedly the most expensive house in the U. K. which was allegedly, last sold for around ninety million pounds – £90,000,000; this house has 12 bedrooms, a jewel encrusted basement pool, marble pillars, garaging for 20 cars and is said to 55 times bigger than an average house.
The lucky owner of this house, which is in Band H pays £2158.24 per annum in Council Tax.
Can anybody explain this to me please?
Yours sincerely,
Puzzled of Whitby
AKA Richard Ineson,
131, Church Street,
Whitby,
YO22 4DE
