A 45% council tax precept rise for residents of the Isle of Wight’s county town has been agreed by its council as part of a budget to deliver ‘very good services’ and become an ambitious local authority.
A total of 7 Newport and Carisbrooke community councillors (NCCC) voted for a £1.22 million budget including £72,500 in grants, £36,500 on an environment officer and £259,000 in staff costs, under its administration and communication provisions.
A pair of councillors voted against the budget: Matthew Price and Tamsin Verrinder, the latter of whom sighed during the vote before saying “it’s too much”.
Spending plans also include £8,000 for poverty alleviation support, £25,000 for planning enforcement assistance and £19,000 for Summer Fayre 2026.
The precept for Band D council taxpayers now amounts to £145.45 per year, up from £100.27 in 2025/26.
At the council’s Monday evening meeting (9th February), Chair of NCCC’s finance committee Cllr Andrew Garratt said:
“I’ve been one of those councillors who’ve voted for a lower (precept) uplift year on year, particularly in those years where inflation was headlining at a very high amount.
“We as a council held our money down. But things move on. Did we want to continue to manage a decline, because inflation alone eats into what we can afford or did we need to reset ourselves, knowing that the things we already deliver and aim to deliver are important to the people of Newport and Carisbrooke?
Article continues below this advertisement “I think finance committee has taken that decision to propose we reset ourselves. Otherwise, we’re aiming for a false economy…managing decline, not looking after our assets…staff, our buildings, the green areas – everything we do.”
Later in the evening, he said many local organisations would benefit from the council’s grants which include £20,000 for the Newport Youth Cafe – Revive, £10,000 for the Isle of Wight Youth Trust and £2,000 for the Pan Together money management advice service.
Cllr Garratt said:
“We are going to be delivering very good services, either ourselves or through grants. We do wish to be an ambitious council, and we’ve shown we are prepared to do so but in a financially sensible way.”
A draft budget set out in a paper signed by Cllr Garratt was amended during the meeting, with changes including the removal of £50,000 for Victoria Recreation Ground improvement work and £5,000 from the Shaping Newport project as well as adding £45,290 in funding to youth provision.
Pan and Barton county councillor Geoff Brodie previously criticised NCCC’s draft budget plans, saying the council seems to have “forgotten that times are still very hard for most residents, particularly mine in the most hard-pressed area of the Island”.
So that’s not a 45% increase in the TOTAL council tax just an extra 45 quid for the local parish, or, an extra £3.75 a month.
The bit that pisses me off though is that instead of weighting the extra money for poverty alleviation, the majority is going to planning enforcement assistance! THAT’S the bit that should have been questioned!
People are already on or near the poverty line and the council think this is acceptable? More money from us but not more services from you? It’s insane.
Are you serious?! Us residents won’t be able to afford this! We are struggling to make ends meet as it is, and now the council want us to pay even more? Funding gaps are central government and local spending issues, it shouldn’t fall to the public to pay the shortfall, once again! Many of us are barely surviving as it is!
Have you tried not being a brokie?
Without doubt this 45% increase will be playing into the hands of Reform . I can afford it but many wont. Its about time the ratepayers had some say in setting this increase
These Mickey Mouse town & parish councils are, like food banks, a self perpetuating drain on funds. Start a food bank and the growth of “customers” will rise according to the principle “if something is Free, more people will use it” .
NCCC have absolutely NO input to Planning Enforcement, that’s the prerogative of the Isle of Wight County Council Planning Dept., so where is this £25,000 really being spent?
Then there’s dear old Town of Vulture 2026 entry, Ventnor, for example:
“Ventnor Town Council completed a consultation regarding the budget setting for 2026/27. The results have previously been circulated to members of the council for their consideration following the informal budget meeting of 19th January.
b) A total of 41 responses were received, with the following headline results relating to services:
i. 83% support continued support of the Wellbeing Café
ii. 91% support continued funding of the Ventnor Community Playgroup
iii. 74% support continued funding of Youth Work in town
iv. 71% support continued funding of the Warmer Ventnor Project”
So after this dubious “public” consultation in a place of some 6,000 inhabitants, a total of 41 people or 0.4%, decided that they want more free stuff and the remaining 99.6% must pay for it. Probably the same 41 who have already spent the £3million prize for the Town of Culture?
Can’t wait to see what Brading and Shalfleet put forward!
They need to top up their pensions some how
They need to top up their pensions
At least we have 2 cllrs with a conscience.
How dare ‘they’ decide to increase the precept by 45%! Not even having the decency to put it to the residents to ask our opinion, if we can afford it, first! How dare they!
More idiotic ideas from the idiot council.
Gotta keep their pensions topped up hey.
What planning enforcement? They’re just approving everything no matter how short sighted it is IE acorn farm, knowing blatantly the traffic is bad there now, but still allowing more not so affordable houses for who knows