A crucial County Hall meeting will take place tonight (Wednesday) where Isle of Wight councillors will vote on the 2025/26 budget and a 4.99% council tax hike.
Full Council is due to decide on proposals including £1.5million in savings, an £11.1million increase in adult social care spending, £4.7million extra for children’s services and new capital investment worth £13million.
A budget report to be presented to the chamber paints a bleak financial picture – ‘the pace at which costs rise is not matched by the pace at which income and funding rise’.
It says:
“The budget setting process continues to be as challenging as ever. Local government continues to suffer from exceptional levels of both price rises and demand increases across social care and housing which is destabilising the sector to the extent that many more councils are seeking Exceptional Financial Support from government through the approval to borrow to fund their deficits and to increase their council taxes beyond the referendum thresholds.
“Additional spending of £15.8 million in adult social care and children’s services is required next year simply to maintain services at existing levels.
“It makes some provision for the National Living Wage increase of 6.7 per cent and the impact of changes to the Employer’s National Insurance rates and thresholds.
“The increase in the council tax of 4.99 per cent and a savings requirement of £1.5 million will avoid the council dropping below the minimum level of reserves and further compromising its overall financial resilience but running a structural deficit of £4.3 million.”
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The ruling Alliance administration’s plans have proven controversial, with both the Isle of Wight Conservatives and Liberal Democrats airing concerns.
Island Tories accused the Alliance of ‘out of control’ spending whilst the Liberal Democrats, though condemning local government ‘underfunding’ by Whitehall, expressed disquiet over a proposed reduction in ‘affordable housing equity’ and potential cuts to the council’s work with the voluntary sector.
Full Council will meet at 17:00 tonight at County Hall.
So our soon to be illegal council will be sticking up the amount we have to pay. Well not me, I am not paying it. I don’t pay for a tax for something where my vote has been taken away.
Yawn.
sorry if the subject is boring you, maybe read so woke rubbish elsewhere.
No, the subject is really interesting, but your wilful ignorance isn’t. You don’t pay tax in order to have a vote, you pay tax to have your bins collected.
Give us our vote back, the council is as corrupt as hell, and after April no longer valid.
The whole Polical system is bent,
that’s democracy for you.
Over £2,000.00 a year to have our bins
collected is daylight robbery, even
Dick Turpin wasn’t that bad.
I totally agree. Everyone on the island needs to refuse to pay then what will they do? It’s ridiculous how the council think it’s acceptable, most people are struggling with all the bills they already have to pay!
Council tax is the biggest con of all taxes.
It is a well known fact that over 25% of the charge
goes into the Councils lucrative pension pot.
The island charges one of the most expensive
Council taxes in the country.
We also have to pay to use public toilets
50p in Sandown.
We also have to pay a nightly charge of £2 to park our
vehicles along seafronts.
We also pay the most expensive green waste charges in
the country.
“Scandalous”
And? How would civil service staff be paid otherwise? ALL council pay into Local Gov’t Pension Schemes. And that’s exactly the same diatribe you posted days ago…are you copying and pasting? In case you missed it:
We don’t have one of the highest, do a comparison across all unitary areas.
Some Hampshire areas charge £1 a pee.
Some Hampshire areas charge £3.50 overnight parking.
Green waste charges are not the most expensive, generally they are comparable.
Where on earth are you getting your information from?
I have friends who are Civil servants,
biggest bunch of lazy B’stards in the country.
Some go in the office 1 day a week and I am not
joking.
That is why Council tax needs to be so much,
to pay their extortionate salaries and lucrative
pensions.
You need to do your homework, many councils
charge half of what IW Council charge for green
waste.
My information is correct.
If you don’t pay Council tax you will be sent to
Prison, but you can drink drive and just pay a fine.
What sort of law is that!
You are wrong, you WILL NOT be sent sent to prison for non payment, that is a myth.
No, you will get a summons, a CCJ and a fine. And STILL you’ll have to pay.
Google it, many people have sadly been sent
to prison for failing to pay council tax.
I saw a documentary once on TV where a lady
in her 70’s was sent to prison.
I am not joking.
I wonder how many households will claim they
live alone to get their 25% Council tax reduction!
Roll on devolution, the sooner we are run by the mainland the
better.
We pay more Council tax on the island than the wealthy pay to
live in London.
Council tax is such an unfair tax, poll tax was much
fairer for everyone.
You are talking total rot, as per usual.
In that instance, she’s not (unusually).
The reason being that wealthy Londoners send their children to private schools and their elderly rarely need social care. Their illnesses are fewer because they do not live in relative poverty constantly bombarded with stress of life. Hence, lower needs, lower taxes.
Well said.
Irish Anus is drinking far too many
Guinness’s
Lol
Devolution will save us thousands
Of course it will be approved, they will be taking part of it out for their pensions. All the council tax is, is a tax for having a roof over your head, in other words, if you own a property , you pay tax for it, but those with a free roof over their heads will pay nothing. Why should we pay council tax for a council we have been denied the right from voting in.
All council’s taxation also has to fund wages and pensions. People don’t work for free. The tax is proportionate inasmuch as the bigger your affluence(house) the more you will pay. That the same if owned or rented.
We don’t pay tax in order to vote. We pay tax to provide the services that ALL people need. Social care for the elderly, schools for children, rubbish collection, street lighting etc etc. We don’t scrutinise every single member of society to determine whether they’ve paid enough or are ‘worthy’…that would be just plain wrong.
I do agree though that given the level of poverty and therefore affluence on the island, a size of house banding tax that hasn’t changed since 1993 needs addressing. A wealth tax instead would make sure we ALL had the needed services, and our contributions would be minimal then. Why? Because a £10m pound house is no different in charges that a £320,000 one, but I’ll bet you their hoarded wealth is.
The services are s h i t, why do we pay over
£2,000.00 + a year Council tax and still have to pay to
have a p i s s or s h i t!!
So true.
I wonder if Royals and politicians actually pay
Council tax, me does not think so.
Many dodge inheritance tax.
They are money grabbing councillors you can guarantee there ” expenses ” will go up again at a rate in excess of this rise and yet they lie and paint a picture of financial ruin for the Island when in fact it is them there causing it.
We,the taxpayers of the Island of Wight, demand that elections be held this year and the number of councillors halved
Thieving lot of ba….ds.
Life sucking
Soul destroying
Ever grabbing
Personal pension hoarding
Incompetent
Lousy
Undermining
Isle of wight council
Their the real thing
Wouldn’t be suprised if that weasel Jordan took the first vote
Thanks council
Supporting your islanders as usual.
Enjoy your big fat pension.
Karma will catch up one day .