widget/exchange-29
widget/exchange-30widget/exchange-33
widget/exchange-31

Council / SIC council tax rise among lowest in Scotland, chief executive says

SHETLAND’s council tax rise of 4.5 per cent is among the lowest in Scotland, according to chief executive Maggie Sandison.

A rise of 10 per cent, for example, has now been approved in Orkney, while Western Isles council will increase its fee by five per cent – the same as Aberdeen.

Some other local authorities are imposing a higher hike – East Lothian is going up by seven per cent, for example.

But only a few have so far gone for a lower rate than Shetland – Perth and Kinross is increasing council tax by 3.9 per cent, while Highland is four per cent.

Shetland councillors made the decision to increase council tax by 4.5 per cent in February.

There was some concern voiced on social media regarding the impact this could have on the community during the cost of living crisis, but elected members had already frozen the rate last year, and rising inflation meant the majority of councillors sided with the 4.5 per cent rise.

offset-carousel/post-mobile/0

In the council chamber Shetland Central councillor Ian Scott proposed another freeze, citing the value of the local authority’s reserves, but this was comprehensively beaten in a vote after only being supported by Labour member Tom Morton.

Sandison said when it comes what Band D properties pay in council tax, Shetland is the “lowest level in Scotland”.

SIC chief executive Maggie Sandison. Photo: Shetland News

It comes as the council highlights a significant budget challenge as it prepares to set its financial position for the 2023/24 financial year.

It has already issued a list of possible options councillors will consider in the budget setting process to save money whilst also increasing income.

At Orkney Islands Council the hope is that a 10 per cent council tax increase, and drawing a record amount from reserves, will mean no cuts to services this coming year. But officers there are warning that service reductions may be inevitable if a funding disparity is not resolved by the government in the future.

Become a member of Shetland News

 

SIC chief Sandison said the cost of living crisis was “very much in our minds when we were setting the proposed level to recommend to members”.

“I think we were thinking about what was the range of affordability, recognising that people on the lowest income have direct access to council tax benefits to help them,” she added.

“But also recognising that the funding gap that we have in terms of services – if we can’t maintain services for people, the people who will be hit the hardest are the people who are struggling to live well in Shetland.”

Sandison said it is the “people on lowest incomes who benefit often from our services”.

offset-carousel/post-mobile/1

She suggested that in some ways charging people for council tax “enables us to help people most, and support them.”

The 4.5 per cent increase would bring in an extra £463,788 a year to the council, but in a report presented to February’s full council meeting a funding gap of more than £4.7 million was highlighted.

Sandison said some services to support vulnerable people are not statutory services, so “they’re not things we get funded for”.

“We’d pay for that through our own income or council tax,” the chief executive said – referring to the early intervention and prevention work in the Anchor Project as an example.

In terms of the budget setting which will take place next week, Sandison said officers have identified some ways of saving money instantly, while some proposals would involve reviews which would go out to consultation before being reported back to elected members.

She added that a focus of the council’s financial approach will be vacancy management – such as whether unfilled posts be frozen.

Sandison highlighted that “we used to budget for being fully staffed, so it has been underspent historically”.

Become a member of Shetland News

Shetland News is asking its many readers to consider paying for membership to get additional features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please become a member of Shetland News by either making a single payment, or setting up a monthly, quarterly or yearly subscription.

 
widget/pd_widget-6widget/pd_widget-7widget/exchange-53widget/exchange-54widget/pd_widget-8widget/exchange-55widget/pd_widget-9widget/exchange-56

Newsletters

Subscribe to a selection of different newsletters from Shetland News, varying from breaking news delivered on the minute, to a weekly round-up of the opinion posts. All delivered straight to your inbox.

Daily Briefing Newsletter Weekly Highlights Newsletter Opinion Newsletter Life in Shetland Newsletter

JavaScript Required

We're sorry, but Shetland News isn't fully functional without JavaScript enabled.
Head over to the help page for instructions on how to enable JavaScript on your browser.

Your Privacy

We use cookies on our site to improve your experience.
By using our service, you agree to our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy.

Browser is out-of-date

Shetland News isn't fully functional with this version of .
Head over to the help page for instructions on updating your browser for more security, improved speed and the best overall experience on this site.

Interested in Notifications?

Get notifications from Shetland News for important and breaking news.
You can unsubscribe at any time.

Have you considered becoming a member of Shetland News?

If you appreciate what we do and feel strongly about impartial local journalism, then please consider paying for membership and get the following features and services: -

  • Remove non-local ads;
  • Bookmark posts to read later;
  • Exclusive curated weekly newsletter;
  • Hide membership messages;
  • Comments open for discussion.