Council tax to increase by £5 for people living in East Northants

At its budget meeting last night (Wednesday), a number of options were discussed to safeguard services in the future.

The increase agreed unanimously will be an extra £5 per year for a Band D home, or 10p a week.

The council takes only about 8p in every pound of the total council tax collected, with the rest of the money going to Northamptonshire County Council, Northamptonshire Police and Crime Commissioner and town and parish councils.

Only eight per cent of what is collected goes to ENC to run the services they are responsible for.

Council leader Steven North said: “We currently have the lowest council tax of any council in Northamptonshire, and almost the lowest in the country.

“Investment in our communities is a priority as shown by our £1m commitment to local projects through our Community Facilities Fund.

“We will continue to look for savings but due to uncertainty about future government funding and because we want to continue to invest in our communities, we propose a very small increase, which for a Band D property works out over the year at £5; we think that represents good value for money.”