To review the charges for fees to be levied to the general public by the Legal Services Division within the Corporate and Customer Services Department with effect from 1st July, 2006.

THAT    (a) the fee increases for the Land Charge Services for 2006/2007 are in line with inflation; and cover increased staff and service costs; and

(b)the new fees, as detailed in the schedule below, take effect on 1st July, 2006.

Land Charge Search Fees

Item                                                                                         Existing Fee              Proposed

Fee

                                                                                                £                                  £

Basic Search Fee                                                                  135.00                         140.00

Basic Search submitted by NLIS                                        111.00                        116.00

Additional parcels of land                                                            30.00                            35.00

Part II enquiries                                                                     15.00                            20.00

The level of fees proposed is estimated to cover the cost of the service provided.  Customs and Excise have indicated that the proposed fees are exempt from VAT because they relate to a non-business activity of the Council.

The Audit Commission has published a management paper on fees and charges entitled ‘The Price is Right’.  This report identified that Best Value provides an excellent opportunity to use charges for services to assist in the delivery of priorities, improve services and generate income.

With consistent falls in revenue support grant and other budgetary pressures the Audit Commission consider that Council’s need to focus on other sources of income and the level of service they can fund.  If individual service areas cannot contribute directly towards the Council’s ambitions and policies then the assumption is that income maximisation should be the goal.

Our own District Audit, in a Management letter to the Council pointed out that whilst charges are inevitably about raising income, they are also central to how services are delivered, and can be used to control access, respond to competition, fund investment and influence user behaviour.

There are no viable alternative options.