Issue - meetings

Report number:     CAB/WS/21/058

Portfolio holder: Councillor Sarah Broughton

Lead officer: Rachael Mann

Recommended to Council:

(14 December 2021)

That:

1.       the Local Council Tax Reduction (LCTRS) Scheme for 2022 to 2023, as outlined in Report number: CAB/WS/21/058, be reviewed.

2.       The changes to the scheme outlined in section 2 of Report number: CAB/WS/21/058, and as detailed in Appendix C, be agreed.

(Report number CAB/WS/21/058)

The Cabinet considered this report, which was recommending to Council approval of proposed changes to the West Suffolk Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme.

Each year the Council was required to review its Local Council Tax Reduction Scheme (LCTRS). The report provided an annual review of the 2021 to 2022 scheme and proposed to make changes to the scheme for 2022 to 2023, having been subject to preceptor, stakeholder and public consultation, as required by the relevant regulations when amendments to the scheme were proposed.

Councillor Sarah Broughton, Portfolio Holder for Resources and Property, drew relevant issues to the attention of Cabinet, including that the proposed changes to take effect from 1 April 2022, were as follows:

If implemented, these changes would affect:

1.   the threshold for how much capital a customer could own (for example, savings) and still be entitled to a council tax reduction

2.   the impact that living with non-dependent adult friends or family members had on the council tax reduction that a customer received

3.   the relationship between the application processes for Universal Credit and for Local Council Tax Reduction

4.   the way in which fluctuations in a customer’s earnings were taken into account in the LCTRS

Each of the proposed changes were detailed in turn within section 2 of the report.

Having considered the proposals, their potential impact and the outcomes of the consultation, the Cabinet was supportive of the amended scheme and agreed it should be recommended to Council for approval.

Recommended to Council (14 December 2021):

That:

1.       the Local Council Tax Reduction (LCTRS) Scheme for 2022 to 2023, as outlined in Report number: CAB/WS/21/058, be reviewed.

2.       The changes to the scheme outlined in section 2 of Report number: CAB/WS/21/058, and as detailed in Appendix C, be agreed.

(Councillor Ian Houlder left the meeting at the conclusion of this item.)