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Council tax freeze
05/03/2008
John Swinney today welcomed the decision by Clackmannanshire Council to keep council tax at 07/08 levels - meaning the unfair tax has been frozen throughout Scotland - except for one council, Stirling, which cut their council tax.
The Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth said:
"Today's decision means that no council tax payer in Scotland will see any increase in their council tax bill this year. That will be a huge relief as people face real pressure on their household budgets as other bills such as food and fuel continue to rise.
"Not only is the freeze good for taxpayers - the extra money in people's pockets is also good for the economy. More people with more disposable income can only help our goal of increased sustainable economic growth in Scotland.
"People said the freeze wouldn't or couldn't happen. That a council tax freeze was nothing more than a pipe dream.
"But the new relationship between central and local government enshrined in the historic concordat is proving the sceptics wrong.
"It has secured much needed relief from the punishing increases in council tax of recent years. And it is providing new opportunities for councils to enhance the services they deliver.
"There has been some disgraceful scaremongering about supposed cuts in services - but the reality on the ground is that councils are taking full advantage of the package of measures this Government has put in place.
"This includes £70 million to freeze council tax levels - which equates to a 3.2% increase, greater freedom for councils to decide locally on how best to spend their resources and, for the first time, allowing councils to retain in full their efficiency savings, which means they will have more to reinvest in frontline services.
"Added to our record investment in local government - a 13.1 per cent increase over three years - we are giving people across Scotland a better deal. Not only are we putting more money in their pockets, we are giving their local council the chance to provide more services of the quality they need and deserve.
"This Government is committed to abolishing Council Tax altogether and replacing it with a fairer system based on the ability to pay and we will publish a consultation document shortly."
Total package of funding for local government sees an investment of £34.9bn over 2008-11 - an increase of 13.1% across the period.
The total annual figures are:
2008-09: £11.2bn [5.0% increase on 07-08 figures]
2009-10: £11.6bn [4.1% increase on 08-09 figures]
2010-11: £12.0bn [3.4% increase on 09-10 figures]