Protest over plans for 9.99% council tax hike
BBCAbout a hundred people have staged a protest against plans to increase council tax by nearly 10%.
Members of Bradford United Against Austerity and some of the authority's independent councillors held up banners reading "No to council tax increase" when they demonstrated in Bradford's Centenary Square on Saturday.
The Labour-run council had submitted a bid to hike bills by 14.99% in 2025-26 but was only given consent for a 9.9% increase - the highest rise in the country. A decision is due be made on Thursday.
Susan Hinchcliffe, leader of the council, said the tax was currently £145 below the national average for metropolitan district councils and the lowest in West Yorkshire.
Ismail Uddin, an independent councillor, said many people in the city would "not be able to afford an increase".
Echoing the councillor's sentiments, Rob Hoveman, one of the protesters, said: "That is the highest council tax rise in the country, it's way ahead of inflation.
"We think this rise is absurd and should have been resisted by the council."
Ms Hinchcliffe said the decision to request a one-off rise, which went beyond the usual 4.99%, was "not taken lightly".
"None of us want to see an increase in council tax when other bills are also rising but we have a responsibility to make sure the council's finances balance," she said.
"We are trying wherever possible to find new ways of working and new funding sources so that we can save money for council taxpayers without cutting vital services.
"But by increasing council tax now, in many cases by £2 or £3 a week, we can avoid significant borrowing costs of £111m for Bradford council taxpayers over the next 20 years and protect services in the longer term."
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