Reform UK accused of ‘empty rhetoric’ over plan to hike council tax 5% in Derbyshire

A Reform-led local authority has confirmed it is planning to increase council tax by the maximum allowed amount, despite promises during the local election to reduce taxes.Derbyshire county council confirmed the rise after predicting a £38m gap in its budget, with overspends in children’s social care and adult social care.It is now one of four local authorities where Reform UK has a majority or is the biggest party to have proposed 5% council tax rises, according to recent announcements.This includes North Northamptonshire, West Northamptonshire and Leicestershire county councils.In addition, a 5% council tax rise has not been ruled out by leaders at Reform-led Lancashire and Kent county councils, as well as in Warwickshire.Local authorities are due to approve council tax proposals in late February or early March. In December, the government published its funding plans for local authorities, which assumed most would raise council tax by the maximum amount.The increase in council tax in Derbyshire is expected to raise about £29m this financial year and will coincide with a new round of cuts worth £22m, according to its budget saving proposals.The savings do not appear to include significant job cuts, despite council leader, Alan Graves, pledging to do so after claiming the local authority was 20% overstaffed.The budget proposals report blames inflation, rising demand and the government’s new local government funding formula as having contributed to budgetary pressures.It states the council “being a rural shire county has suffered as a result of the reforms” and in order to “maintain funding levels there will be a need to set increases in council tax at the maximum permitted level”.The proposed increase in council tax has attracted criticism from opposition councillors in Derbyshire who accuse the party of “empty rhetoric”.Conservative opposition leader, Alex Dale, said: “It is now painfully clear that Reform’s promise to ‘cut your taxes’, plastered across leaflets and campaign material right across the county in last year’s elections, was nothing more than empty rhetoric.“Residents were sold a simple slogan, but the reality is that those promises were as worthless as the paper they were printed on.”Gez Kinsella, the leader of the Green group at the council, said the party had promised to “cut taxes and improve services”, adding: “Reform’s ‘moon on a stick’ promises are turning out to be as true as the previous Conservative administration fantasy economics.”Kinsella shared leaflets and letters she said Reform had distributed in Derbyshire before the local elections which pledged to “cut your taxes” and criticised rising council tax bills amid cuts to services.In March this year, Derbyshire councillor Martin Bromley also posted an image on Facebook which included the statement: “Say no to Labour … say no to increased council tax.”Reform UK said it never promised to freeze or reduce council tax during the election campaign and any pledges to reduce taxes were in relation to national policy.Similar criticisms have also been raised at other Reform-led councils.Leicestershire county council leader, Dan Harrison, declared the party would be able to “cut council tax” after the May local elections. However, just six months later, Harrison conceded that, although “a council tax freeze is our aspiration … conditions are unlikely to allow this for next year”.Reform took control of 10 local authorities and became the largest party in three others in May, with the party’s leader, Nigel Farage, promising to tackle “wasteful” spending as well as scrap net zero and diversity and inclusion initiatives. ‘Suck it up’: Exclusive footage reveals tensions inside Reform UK council – videoCouncils are legally required to ensure a balanced budget. The proposals put forward by Derbyshire council of an £838m budget for the upcoming year is about £38m below what the authority said it needs.Like the previous Conservative administration, Reform will have to rely on part of the authority’s reserves to support “ongoing budget pressures,” a move it acknowledges is “not financially sustainable”.The plans are expected to be considered by the council in the coming weeks.The cabinet member for council efficiency (Doge) at Derbyshire county council, John Lawson, said in response that next year’s council tax increase was still under review.“There is still work to do as we look at the numbers across the board. No decisions have been made as yet, and a final proposal will be put to cabinet to discuss at its meeting on 29 January,” he said