COUNTY leaders have proposed increasing council tax by almost 5% in Herefordshire.

Herefordshire Council leaders say they need the increase to help pay for the growing costs of providing services.

Their proposals for the 2021/22 revenue budget would see a 1.99% increase in core council tax and a 3% adult social care precept, if full council gives its approval on February 12.

This increases the charge for a band D property to £1,652.30 representing a rise of £78.52 per year.

Finance and corporate services cabinet member Liz Harvey said 2020 did not turn out like anyone had expected.

“As a council, we did expect pressures on our social care services to continue to increase and our service transformation programs were budgeted to continue,” she said.

“None of us anticipated the impact the Covid-19 pandemic would have upon us nationally and locally.

“In year, officers have responded swiftly and with creativity and flair to the tsunami of challenges presenting themselves as we’ve all battled the Covid waves.

“This 2021 budget sees us needing recognise and plan for the sustained uplift in service delivery costs and reduction in income sources which Covid continues to present to us as challenges.

“Together these represent over £15m of additional cost pressures.

“Thanks to support from central government we are only looking at delivering operational savings of just over £11m in order to create a funding gap capable of being bridged by the allowable council tax uplift of 4.99%.”

She said the government had allowed councils to ring fence 3% uplift in that tax to go towards the ballooning cost of adult social care.

“The remaining 1.9% increase is all that’s available to cover cost rises across all other council services.”

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Health and adult wellbeing cabinet member Pauline Crockett said there was no other option but to support the council tax increase.

“We are all well aware of our ageing population and the costs to provide care and support for these elderly residents,” she said.

Conservative leader Jonathan Lester said his group acknowledged it was a very difficult time to be setting a budget.

However, he said members of the public would find it difficult to understand the 4.99% increase while reserves will be “written off to the tune of £11m in cancelling road projects and paying for reviews”.

“It’s going to be difficult for members of the public to square those two issues.”

Infrastructure and Transport cabinet member John Harrington said the reality was the money had been already been spent.

“We have to clear out the cupboard unfortunately,” he said.

“In my opinion it has been misspent. £12m and over a decade nothing really to show for it and another 10 years to produce a plan which is going to help our businesses and residents in Hereford that just doesn’t make sense.”

Liberal Democrats group leader Terry James said all councils would be asking central government for better funding.

“I wish you well in trying to explain to the general public how you are going to put up the council tax by 5% and yet you are going to tip £12m down the drain by decapitalising the capital programs to revenue,” he said.

Coun Harrington said he couldn’t reiterate the point more clearly.

“The money has been misspent. What do you propose we do?”

Coun Harvey said the money has been spent.

“We’ve got two projects here. One simply cannot be delivered; the money isn’t there for it.

“And the other one doesn’t represent good value for money and isn’t a sustainable solution that will not address the city’s traffic troubles in a way second bridge would.”

Cabinet unanimously agreed to recommend increasing council tax by 4.99%.