To approve the council tax reduction scheme for 2020/21.

Council considered a report by the Leader to agree the council tax reduction scheme for 2020/21.

The Leader moved the report and proposed the current council tax reduction scheme for approval. The scheme proposed for approval had been originally adopted in 2015 and it was considered the scheme continued to provide an appropriate level of reduction.

The cabinet member finance and corporate services seconded the report and explained that the retention of the current scheme was supported by responses to the budget consultation. The scheme provided support to vulnerable residents and those suffering hardship. In effect the scheme resulted in a reduction in council tax to the council of £10.9 million. Over 80% of council tax billed to claimants of the reduction scheme was collected; a rate which had remained consistent across the period of the current reduction scheme.

The principal points below were raised during the debate:

·         The provision of relief of up to three months to local residents forced to leave their homes following flooding was raised and what further relief could be provided after three months.

·         There was concern at those local residents who did not meet the threshold to claim the reduction but who were just about managing.

·         The number of claimants for a reduction highlighted the high number of people in the county on low incomes.

A named vote was held to agree the council tax reduction scheme set out in the report. The scheme was approved unanimously.

FOR (52): Councillors Paul Andrews, Polly Andrews, Bartlett, Bartrum, Bolderson, Boulter, Bowen, Bowes, Chowns, Crockett, Davies, Durkin, Fagan, Foxton, Gandy, Guthrie, Hardwick, Harrington, Harvey, Hewitt, Hey, Hitchiner, Howells, Hunt, I’Anson, James, Jinman, Johnson, Graham Jones, Mike Jones, Kenyon, Lester, Marsh, Matthews, Millmore, Milln, Norman, Phillips, Price, Rone, Seldon, Shaw, Stark, Stone, Summers, Swinglehurst, Symonds, Tillett, Toynbee, Tyler, Watson and Wilding.

Against (0)

Abstentions (0)

RESOLVED: that the council tax reduction scheme for 2020/21, attached at appendix 1, is approved with the same parameters as the existing scheme.