New TPA analysis has shockingly revealed that the average council tax bill could pass £2,000 this year for the majority of the UK.
Working with The Telegraph, our team looked at what would happen if all authorities put up their bills by the maximum. 83 per cent of authorities would be charging over £2,000, whilst three areas would be charging over £2,400!
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In comments picked up by some of Britain’s leading newspapers, our investigations campaign manager, Elliot Keck, blasted the prospect, explaining: “By lifting the ceiling on council tax hikes, the government has granted a free pass to wasteful councils. Local authorities who play fast and loose with taxpayer cash will be licking their lips ahead of what promises to be another painful round of rate rises”.
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Back on the road
2023 may only be a couple of weeks old, but the TPA has hit the ground running.
On Monday, our team was out in Arundel, West Sussex, where Arun district council plan to spend nearly £500,000 building a luxury Airbnb.
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Conor Holohan, our media campaign manager, gave a run down of the situation, highlighting the dodgy sums and strong local opposition to the proposals. As Conor says: “Councils should focus on delivering public services at a good value to the taxpayer, not needless property speculation”.
If you live in Arundel or Walberton, sign our letter calling for these plans to be scrapped!
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TaxPayers' Alliance in the news
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Pride police
A new TPA investigation has exposed that police forces in England and Wales have managed to spend £66,000 on rainbow themed merchandise and memorabilia. The worst offenders were South Wales police who managed to spend £24,000 on rainbow flags, face paints, T-shirts, badges, pens, whistles, wristbands, sporks, trolley coins, water bottles and keyrings.
Cautioning coppers in comments to The Telegraph, TPA researcher, Tom Ryan, slammed the wasteful wokery: “Police chiefs have been caught red-handed wasting money on woke nonsense. With crime on the up, it will bring little comfort to Brits knowing that bobbies are kitted out with rainbow merchandise”.
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Following up live in the GB News studio, Elliot told Andrew Doyle: “Crime is up by about five, six per cent since the pandemic. Clearly there is a lot for the police to be getting on with… you have to wonder what’s going on there”.
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Money, money, money
When it emerged that councils have spent millions on royalties to play music for visitors and staff in their buildings, TPA towers were left in stunned silence.
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Beating the drum for taxpayers, John O’Connell, our chief executive, told Scotland’s Sunday Mail: "Taxpayers will be furious that their cash is being wasted after constantly hearing public sector bosses say there’s no more fat left to trim”.
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Aunty avoids answering
When the BBC refused to reveal how much they spent producing their latest ‘I’m not a monster’ podcast series, telling the story of ISIS bride Shamima Begum, we wasted no time calling out the Corporation’s covert costs.
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As our digital campaign manager, Joe Ventre, told Daily Express readers: “Licence fee cash should not be supporting this disgraceful PR exercise to spin the sob story of an Isis bride… it's seriously concerning that taxpayers can't get information about the cost of this creation, with the BBC only becoming less transparent”.
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For this week’s blog, Elliot gives us his latest War on Waste update, with details of some of the squandered money we uncovered in December.
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From public sector gift vouchers, to aid money for India, there’s clearly a lot of fat left to trim. Something for us all to remember next time quangos and councils claim to be cut to the bone…
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Regular readers will know we recently highlighted the case of Conwy county borough council who spent over £600,000 heating offices despite much of the workforce working from home.
In a bit of good news for taxpayers, it looks like Nottinghamshire county council has heeded our calls and closed offices during holiday periods, saving local residents £75,000. It’s great to see local councils implementing TPA ideas, even if they are planning to hike council tax!
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Benjamin Elks
Fundraising, Operations, and Events assistant
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