A CASH-STRAPPED Slough Borough Council will consider hiking council tax to the proposed maximum allowed if Government gives the go-ahead.

National media outlets are reporting Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt could announce in the Autumn Statement that they will allow local authorities to hike the levy by nearly five per cent without the need for a vote.

Council tax is currently capped at 2.99 per cent, and if a local authority wants to raise the levy past this limit, it will have to hold a referendum.

This possible council tax increase will be announced this Thursday. If it goes ahead, this, among other measures, is in a bid to fix a multi-billion blackhole in the public finances caused by Covid-19, the Ukraine war, and former Prime Minister Liz Truss’s mini-budget.

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Cllr Rob Anderson (Lab: Britwell & Northborough), lead member for financial oversight, said if this goes ahead, the council will consider this change, but they will still have to find savings due to rising inflation and the Government possibly cutting its funding settlement grant.

He said: “We will consider any changes [the Government] make as part of our budget setting process.

“In all likelihood, if they raise the council tax limit, [the Government] is likely to cut our settlement grant further in January, so any minor freedom they grant on the rate will be offset by that.

“Given that inflation is running at over 10 per cent, even a rise of five per cent council tax will still leave us having to make savings just to stand still. That’s the situation across local government now with some 60 authorities saying they are in deep financial trouble.”

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Slough Borough Council declared bankruptcy last year and needs to reduce its £760m borrowing debt and £479m blackhole via asset sales and £20m yearly savings.

It previously assumed the Government would keep council tax at the 2.99 per cent cap in the latest financial update report.