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Greens suggest doubling council tax bill for second homes in Stratford district




DOUBLING council tax on second homes was one of the ideas put forward for inclusion in next year’s budget for Stratford District Council.

The Greens called for the 100 per cent increase in the charge, which they estimated would raise £100,000 per year that could be used to employ two new officers who would focus on climate change and standards in the private housing sector.

But as the Liberal Democrats are in power, the final say with the budget falls to them and the councillor in charge of SDC’s finances said he feels “reassured” by public feedback on his budget proposals.

Cllr David Curtis (Stratford Shottery), the portfolio holder for resources since the Lib Dems won power in May, said he was heartened by the results of the council’s budget consultation. It was completed by 172 people out of an adult population of around 100,000.

The Lib Dem cabinet on Monday (12th February) voted to press ahead with its budget plans which will be confirmed at a meeting of the full council on 26th February.

The plans include increasing the district’s portion of council tax by the maximum amount allowed – £5 for the average (Band D) property, bringing the total to £164.12 a year (other amounts are added by parish and county councils as well as the police service).

Cllr Curtis said the consultation results showed high levels of support for projects including £85,000 to support the continuation of the UBUS service, an extra £28,000 for rural crime advisers and £250,000 to continue support for those experiencing cost of living pressures.

“I think we can be fairly satisfied,” he said. “No budget is going to please all people all of the time, we have to accept that, and I think we hear that it is a public consultation, not a referendum.

“Looking at the percentage of approval against not approving, while we can’t be complacent by any means, I think we can be reassured that what we are proposing in this budget, broadly speaking, chimes with the expectations of residents.”

The Conservatives and the Green Party have put forward proposed amendments to the spending plans, with the Tories, as reported by the Herald, wanting to abolish the Lib Dem plans to spend up to £250,000 a year running the council’s refuse lorry fleet on a less polluting fuel.

It is estimated the move to hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) will add £200,000 to the annual fuel compared with diesel (the council will not say how much it currently spends on diesel).

The Lib Dems say it is greener and better for the environment than diesel, helping the council towards its climate change targets, while the Conservatives and an independent councillor say not enough is known about the environmental impacts of making HVO and it could simply move the impact on the earth to another corner of the globe.

Cllr Curtis said two-thirds of people who responded to the consultation did not object to the bin lorry changes, although Cllr Andy Crump (Con, Southam East, Central & Stockton) was quick to note he had drawn in people who said they had no opinion either way.

Seventy-eight people were in agreement with the plan, 57 against and 34 had no opinion.

The Conservatives want the HVO money used to buy property to provide short-term accommodation for families fleeing domestic abuse or made homeless by no-fault evictions.

Cllr Liz Coles (Lib Dem, Stratford Hathaway), portfolio holder for customer services and housing, responded that the council already had a £37,000 government grant to fund a specialised domestic abuse housing adviser. She added: “It is going to be kept under review but the homelessness caused by domestic violence, we haven’t felt the need to put in an application to support any sort of shortfall.”

The Conservatives also want to get rid of a £2 rise to annual fees for collecting garden waste, believing that the extra £94,000 it will raise could be covered by the accrual of interest.

They also want to allocate £100,000 to review the council tax reduction scheme, focusing on helping those on the lowest incomes, and increase provision for flood defences.



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