Last year, the people of Winsford elected a huge majority of Salt of The Earth members to their town council. Those members campaigned on a platform which opposed Labour’s proposed 5% annual rise in the town council’s precept. 

Last night, Winsford Town Council voted to increase the precept by a staggering 20%!

This means that an average Winsford resident living in a Band D property will now pay £85 per year for their town council compared to £72 the year before. A significant number of those town councillors are no longer part of the Salt of the Earth group, and have voted in contradiction to the mandate on which they were elected last year, without any fear of challenge or accountability.

This is yet another shocking inflation busting rise in people’s bills, alongside the Labour run Cheshire West & Chester Council’s decision to hike the cost of Green Bin subscriptions from £40 to £50 per year.

It is also very likely that due to insufficient funding from Central Government, CWaC will also choose to increase their council tax by the maximum 5% permitted in law, as a council with social care reaponsibilities.

As Liberal Democrats, we would like to see more decisions being made at a local level, but we also feel very strongly that the taxpayer should not have to absorb more of the burden.

For this to happen, central Government needs to make more funding available to local councils. As the cost of offering statutory services increase, the more risks that local authorities take with risky money raising investments and the less discretion local councils can exercise in non compulsory spending.

This however, does not justify Winsford Town Council’s staggering increase in their precept and I urge those who voted in favour of it to think again.