Aberdeenshire Council

Aberdeenshire council tax freeze has voted for 2021/2022.

Aberdeenshire Councillors have decided at a full meeting of council today to accept a Aberdeenshire council tax freeze which has been supported by funding from the Scottish Government despite concerns over the future implications of the move.

The motion to accept the freeze was made by 60 votes to four in favour.

Finance Secretary Kate Forbes announced that the Scottish Government announced that it would compensate councils who choose to freeze their council tax at 2020/21 levels and that the additional allocation would equate to an increase in council tax of 3 per cent.

However there was no confirmation and promise that this level of financial support would be repeated in the following financial years to come leading to an amendment being brought by members of the council to still go ahead with the rise due to the uncertainty and the knock on effect on future budgets.

For Aberdeenshire Council the tax bands for 2021/22 will be as follows –

	Band	Council Tax	Water	Sewerage	Total
	A	£867.21	£141.66	£164.46	£1,173.33
	B	£1,011.74	£165.27	£191.87	£1,368.88
	C	£1,156.28	£188.88	£219.28	£1,564.44
	D	£1,300.81	£212.49	£246.69	£1,759.99
	E	£1,709.12	£259.71	£301.51	£2,270.34
	F	£2,113.82	£306.93	£356.33	£2,777.08
	G	£2,547.42	£354.15	£411.15	£3,312.72
	H	£3,186.98	£424.98	£493.38	£4,105.34

Water rates will be confirmed when bills are issued at the end of February.

Leader of the Opposition SNP, Labour and Communities Partnership councillor Gwyneth Petrie said:“Families across Aberdeenshire will be relieved that councillors across parties have backed moves to freeze the Council Tax rate.

“The past nine months have been a time of extreme anxiety for many people who have seen their jobs threatened or disappear, or seen their businesses placed under extreme pressure.

“Freezing the Council Tax will give certainty to people that their bill will not increase during this financial year.

“I am therefore very pleased that the council has agreed this measure.”

It was also agreed that average weekly rents for council housing should increase only at the rate of inflation this year, meaning a 2.8 per cent rise from April 1.

This will see the average weekly rent increase by £2.29; a rise from £81.82 to £84.11.