Scottish council tax rises are unjustifiable - Humza Yousaf

Council tax rises are "unjustifiable", Humza Yousaf has said ahead of a vote on Scotland's draft budget.

The first minister said he hoped there could still be a council tax freeze across the whole country.

Extra funding of £62.7m for local authorities had been announced, but only for those that freeze council tax.

Argyll and Bute Council's Conservative, Lib Dem and independent coalition was the first to defy the government when it voted for a 10% rise last week.

Scotland's 32 local authorities have already been offered £147m as compensation for freezing council tax.

MSPs at Holyrood will debate and vote on the Scottish government's draft budget on Tuesday.

Mr Yousaf had pledged in his speech to the SNP conference last October that council tax bills across Scotland would be frozen in 2024-25, to help those struggling during the cost of living crisis.

However, a failure to consult with council leaders ahead of the speech exacerbated tensions between the Scottish government and local authorities over funding.

Proposals announced in December's budget included a new tax band of 45p in the pound for those earning between £75,000 and £125,140, and a "fully funded" council tax freeze, providing local government with the equivalent of a 5% rise.

Mr Yousaf told BBC Scotland News the government was hoping to persuade Argyll and Bute Council to reconsider.

"For those councils like Argyll and Bute, who I think have unjustifiably raised their council tax in the midst of a cost of living crisis, they will have to answer to their constituents," he said.

"People in this country are living through one of the worst, if not the worst, cost of living crisis we've ever seen.

"We can't control every household bill - we are calling for the UK government to do more in that regard - but there's one bill that can be controlled and that's the council tax, and we are providing the funding to local authorities for that."

Cosla, the umbrella body for Scotland's local authorities, previously warned that the freeze and potential cuts to teacher numbers were putting councils and the government in a "fundamental position of dispute".

Cosla's resources spokesperson Katie Hagmann, who is also an SNP councillor in Dumfries and Galloway, said it should be up to local councils to decide on how to set council tax.

She said there should be no sanctions should they choose not to freeze the levy.

She told BBC Scotland News councils were facing really tough decisions to make sure people can "live well locally".

She said: "Alongside the council tax freeze there has been a cut to our core revenue budget of £62.7m.

"It's that cut to the funding that the government has said it will look to restore, only if they take forward the council tax freeze."

She added: "To combine it with the council tax freeze at this late stage does not seem appropriate."

Deputy first minister Shona Robison defended the draft budget proposals.

On BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland programme, it was suggested to Ms Robison that her policy was about punishing councils who did not go along with the freeze.

She said: "This isn't about punishing councils. It's about recognising that taking together the funding that we're providing - the additional funding - is nearly £210m.

"So I don't think it's unreasonable that council tax payers see some of the benefit of that.

"And we believe that at a time when rising prices are putting significant strain on household finances, that the council tax freeze gives some support to households over the coming year."

Ms Robison said local government was getting a larger share of the Scottish government's overall budget, rising from 31% to 32%.