Council tax in Leeds increases by more than a third since 2015 - but is STILL below national average

Council tax costs for Leeds residents are currently five per cent below the average for England, but are still rising above the rate of inflation according to new research from NationalWorld.
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According to figures released by the publisher, the annual cost of council tax for a band D property in Leeds is £1,869.30 - £96 below the national average and £90.94 below that for similarly-sized councils.

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However, the cost of council tax in Leeds has risen by more than a third since 2015, with band D property owners spending an extra £493 than seven years ago - well above the rate of inflation.

How much of your money goes to Civic Hall each year?How much of your money goes to Civic Hall each year?
How much of your money goes to Civic Hall each year?
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On average, band D households in England are paying £1,965.70 in 2022-23, according to figures from the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities. The lowest fee is in Westminster, at just £865.78, while the highest is in Rutland, in Leicestershire, at £2,300.03.

Boris Johnson has promised electors that a vote for Conservative candidates will help keep council tax low, accusing Labour controlled local authorities of imposing bigger levies on residents.

New analysis by NationalWorld has now revealed council tax bills have risen at twice the rate of inflation in England since 2015, when the Conservatives won an overall majority in Parliament.

Residents in Scotland and Wales have also seen huge, inflation-busting rises over the last three decades of the council tax system, including over the last decade.

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Council tax is a system of local taxation linked to the value of properties. It is one of the main sources of funding for councils, which provide a huge range of services including education, housing, social care, sports and leisure facilities, public health, arts and culture and road maintenance.

In England and Scotland properties are placed into one of eight bands from A (cheapest council tax) to H (most expensive). In Wales there are nine bands from A to I.

Each country has a nation-wide scale for assigning properties to bands based on their historical value (the price in 1991 in England and Scotland and in 2003 in Wales).

But local councils – and other authorities funded by council tax, such as police and fire services – then set the fees that they charge for each band.

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