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Council Tax (New Valuation Lists for England) Bill

The hon. Gentleman says that my hon. Friend is wrong, but there are a number of indices of the way in which the council tax grant is developed and sometimes there is a significant time lag. If I were the Minister, I would not be so quick to dismiss that. The Government’s increased use of means-tested benefits and complex application forms has resulted in reduced take-up of council tax benefits, which means that more people on lower incomes are paying higher council taxes. Fewer than two in three eligible pensioners claim the council tax benefit to which they are entitled, compared with three out of four before Labour came to power. It is a terrible indictment of the Government that the take-up of benefit should drop so significantly under their care. The Government should feel ashamed of this unmet pensioner poverty. The House deludes itself if it believes that revaluing property or adding further bands will cure the unpopularity of the council tax. The increase in the proportion of the tax taken from household budgets is a symptom of a desperate problem. The revenue generated by local authority’s tax base has a direct effect on the size of the revenue support grant. Ring-fenced grants often distort the calls on the council tax—the point that my hon. Friend the Member for Salisbury (Robert Key) made so eloquently a few moments ago. The Minister of Communities and Local Government was a Minister in the Department for Education and Skills when the passporting of school funding was introduced. That led to some authorities suffering a cut in funding for other services, and to many more receiving nothing for other services. The Audit Commission became so worried about the rise in council tax levels that it produced a report. Thanks to the Audit Commission, we all know why council tax has risen since Labour came to power. The report outlines three main areas—first, the changes in the grant formula; secondly, the implementation of Government initiatives, often unfunded; and thirdly, national pay rates. Each year the fiasco drags on, and each year it gets worse. In a document that the Government tried to suppress, entitled ““Beyond the Black Hole—a time of opportunity and challenge””, the Local Government Association states that there is"““a £2.2 billion black hole in the funding for local government, equivalent to an increase of 10 per cent.—or around £100—a year in council tax bills””." I note from the Financial Times this morning that Ministers are taking the begging bowl round to find ways to reduce the council tax. It would be a wise thing to do, if they are. The bung in the settlement is equivalent to £1.4 billion. The right hon. Gentleman’s political future depends on stretching that to £2.2 billion.