Consultation under way on cuts to council tax support

As previously reported, Northumberland County Council's current scheme provides assistance of up to 100 per cent of the liability, but it is proposed to drop the maximum to 92 per cent.

Currently, of the 15,425 working-age claimants in Northumberland, 12,010 receive 100 per cent support and currently have no bill to pay. If the proposals are agreed, they would affect all working age claimants. Pensioners will be unaffected by any changes.

The council has a significant budget gap over the next three years, of around £36million, and needs to explore all possible options to help it find savings to reduce that deficit.

Currently, only Northumberland and Durham in the North East continue to provide up to 100 per cent relief and they are among only 37 out of 326 nationally to do so.

The consultation runs until Friday, November 2. The online survey can be accessed by going to bit.ly/CTaxsupport18Copies can also be obtained from the council’s customer information centres from Friday. Drop-in sessions are also planned around the county during the consultation period.