"Coronavirus: Newham Council approves more than £60m worth of council tax and business rates relief"

Headline is from the Newham Recorder and picture of Newham Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz at our 2nd "urgent" Council Cabinet meeting of the current crisis on Friday (3rd April).

Because of legal requirements that all Cabinet meetings had to have at least 3 members present, the Mayor, myself and Cllr Julianne Marriott (Education Chief) were physically present at the meeting with certain senior officers (ironically this requirement was changed the following day).

Other Cabinet and Executive members (and Chair of Scrutiny)  skyped into the meeting as well as senior managers.

As the Recorder reports, we discussed and approved 3 proposals (see live Facebook feed of the meeting https://www.facebook.com/newhamcouncil/videos/2634262050189672/)

We agreed over £60 million of Council tax and business rates relief. Some 20,000 of the poorest Newham families and Households (around 20% of all liable to pay) will now pay zero or little Council tax.

A 100% discount on business rates for eligible businesses who will be also able to apply for grants of between £10,000 to £25,000.

Leisure, retail and hospitality businesses, as well as nurseries are the main beneficiaries of the grants. So your local private gym, clothes shops and pubs should be able to apply for help.

We also agreed to safeguard our critical and essential public services such as bin collections, highways safety, child protection, social care, youth safety, temporary and emergency accommodation

Extra powers were also approved for our Chief Executive and Directors to increase the power to make urgent procurement decisions due to the COVID emergency (subject to consultation with the appropriate Cabinet member). These powers will only be for COVID issues and will last for 6 months and reviewed in 3 months. Cllr Marriott clarified that we can rescind these powers sooner if they are not needed any more.

Cllr Sarah Ruiz (virtually) asked the question about will the Government deliver on their promises to pay for all this? In the light of 10 years of austerity this is a fair point. I also asked that we press for greater clarity and guidance from the government on what they have promised. For example we have undertaken significant expenditure on moving homeless families and children into more suitable self contained accommodation? Will we get the money back and what about afterwards? Will we get the money to properly house these families for the long term?

It was a sombre meeting, knowing how important these issues are to everyone who lives or works in Newham. We were also conscious that we are making these important decisions, without all the usual constitutional and governance arrangements.  I think we have muddled through imperfectly but in the finest traditions of British local government, adapting and evolving to meet the most serious national crisis in my lifetime. 

A "People's Budget" for Newham

Mayor and Cabinet members agree 2019/20 budget proposals

Mayor Rokhsana Fiaz and her Cabinet members have listened to the views of residents and put forward proposals for how Newham Council intends to spend money on what people say is important.​

The Mayor presented her initial 2019/20 people’s budget proposals to Cabinet which include:

• ​Investing £3m to pay our care staff the London Living Wage 
• Investing £1.4m into youth services to keep our young people safe
• ​Investing £6.3m so that primary school children continue to eat for free
• Investing £10.6m into Children’s Services
• Investing £1.3m to support children with Special Educational Needs
• £1.4m to support 19,000 lowest income households by cutting the cost of their Council Tax
• Investing £390,000 for free bulky waste collections
• Accelerating social housing delivery with an additional £500,000
• Investing £250,000 to ensure residents are at the heart of our decision making process.

The proposed investment is influenced by what residents have said, during Citizens’ Assemblies, is important; what councillors say residents have told them are the things they value; and from discussions with partner organisations. The final proposals will be considered by Full Council in February.

Mayor Fiaz said: “Over the past six years, the Government has drastically reduced the funding that we use to deliver services for our residents by almost £91m. In 2019/20 we will need to save at least another £8m lost from Government funding, and we can expect to have to save more in the years after that.

“What we decide now will provide us with a new and different type of budget. It is set to be truly transformative and would allow us to make some of the most radical changes this council has seen in years to the benefit of Newham residents. As well as delivering on manifesto promises, what is being proposed is what residents are saying are priorities; it is a people’s budget.

“And we cannot just think about next year; this has to part of a people’s budget process across the whole four years of this administration. The 2019/20 budget is a transitional one and, if approved, will be a balanced budget.”

To support the 2019/20 proposals, the council needs to make some tough decisions, including a proposed increase in Council Tax of 2.9 per cent alongside a two per cent rise in the precept towards the costs of providing adult social care, while at the same time reducing the burden on those least able to pay.

Councillor Terry Paul, Cabinet member for finance, said: “In terms of cold hard cash, this would mean asking residents for just 89p extra per week at Band D properties to cover the proposed increase in the Newham element of Council Tax. But this continues to give residents access to a whole raft of additional benefits in services as well as not having to reduce what we spend on libraries, parks, street lighting and cleaning, road repairs and leisure services for example.

“Newham Council hasn’t asked for any extra Council Tax from residents for the past ten years. This has meant £82m has been unavailable to us that we could have spent on vital services. Whatever we decide, we will make sure the right support is available for the families who are the least able to pay. We will also continue to save as much money as we can by being more efficient in everything we do.”

To protect vulnerable residents against the proposed increase, the Mayor is looking to increase the support available to 19,000 lowest income families with a variety of measures including extending support to tenants dealing with bad landlords and making care leavers exempt from paying Council Tax until the age of 25. There are also proposed changes to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme, which could reduce the amount eligible residents have to pay in Council Tax to just 10 per cent of the bill, potentially saving them almost £120 per year.

Listening to residents is part of the council’s commitment to openness and culture change within the authority. Mayor Fiaz added: “Our successful Citizens’ Assemblies have told us what our residents value. We have listened and this budget will enable us to build on what we offer.”

There will be Citizens’ Assemblies in January for residents to have conversations about the budget proposals. Details will be published at www.newham.gov.uk/newhampeoplesbudget​ 

Residents can offer their views on the proposed change to the Council Tax Reduction Scheme through an online survey until 16 January. Currently, households eligible for the scheme pay a minimum of 20 per cent of their Council Tax bill. The consultation will ask whether this should be reduced to 10 per cent, 15 per cent or stay the same.

To take part in the consultation, visit www.newham.gov.uk/CTRconsultation or if you have any questions or would like to request a paper copy of the questionnaire please email CTRconsultation@newham.gov.uk​

Hat tip Newham Council Press Release

Newham Council Budget proposals 2019-2020 - London Living Wage; Cut Council Tax for Poor; Eat for Free & Support Children with SEN

I was really proud of the budget proposals announced today by our Labour Mayor, Rokhsana Fiaz, at Full Council tonight. In spite of further Government cuts and Austerity, we are proposing a London Living Wage for all our care staff (then rolled out to all other parts of the Council); cutting Council tax for the poorest; retaining free school meals ("Eat for Free") and supporting children with special educational needs (and other policies).

Nevermind all the transformational stuff we are doing on housing.

This makes politics worthwhile. 

Newham private rented sector licensing scheme breaks £5m barrier for recapturing lost Council Tax

​Since the introduction of licensing in 2013 an extra £5,002,203 has been collected from rogue landlords renting out houses in multiple occupation.​

​Newham’s Private Rented Sector (PRS) licensing scheme began five years ago but was forced, by government, to re-launch from scratch in March 2018. Since its restart the PRS Team have processed and issued over 30,000 new licences.

In the same period the team has taken action against landlords in 120 cases where serious and dangerous disrepair was discovered or landlords were breaking the law.

Cllr John Gray, cabinet member for housing said: “This five million pounds, which would have been lost to the council, and therefore the tax payer, has been recouped by the private rented sector team, and will help us fund the crucial services that our residents rely on, from elderly care, to supporting our young people.”

The council would like to thank those landlords who have joined the new scheme, but remind those that have not yet applied that failure to get a license can result in fines of up to £30,000 or a criminal prosecution and unlimited fines.

In addition from the 1 October this year, new regulations mean properties, no matter how many floors they are arranged over, which are rented to 2 or more households, and/or 5 or more  occupants require a mandatory HMO licence.

The new legislation won’t affect most Newham landlords as they are already required to get a licence to rent out to three or more individuals through Newham’s Additional HMO Licensing Scheme.

The exception is some landlords in the E20 (Stratford New Town) ward will now be required to obtain a HMO licence where previously they were not required to.

The change of rules has been introduced by government, but will be implemented by Newham Council’s Private Sector Housing Team.

Cllr Gray said:  “I would urge any landlords to engage with our team especially if they are unclear about the new regulations. We genuinely want to work with landlords to create a fair rental market for them, and for all our residents. Together we can work to drive the rogues out of the market and improve the lives of tenants.

Hat tip Newham Council press release

“I like to pay taxes. With them, I buy civilisation.” Newham Council Budget meeting 2017

This was to be my speech last night at the Newham Council Meeting on the budget. There was a free vote for Labour Councillors (i.e all of us) and I had proposed an amendment to the budget on increasing Council tax by 1.99% in order to pay for hardship funds for low paid residents suffering Tory cuts and also a 2% precept for the social care crisis.

However, I was only allowed 3 minutes instead of the 5 minutes that I expected to speak on the amendment and I had no right of reply, so was not able to put forward all my arguments outlined below. The amendment was heavily defeated 42-2 (with 3 abstentions) but there was a Oscars "LaLa" moment when the result was initially read out as 42-2 in agreement to my amendment.

It is a shame that there was no other debate on the other budget proposals. Both myself and Cllr Whitworth voted against adopting the budget (with one other abstention)

It was good to have a debate (no matter how unfairly skewed) and it aired an important issue that the Labour Party and the wider public will one day have to tackle. We cannot continue to expect and argue for high quality Scandinavian style public services to be paid for by USA style taxation system.  “I like to pay taxes. With them, I buy civilisation.” – Oliver Wendell Holmes

"Thank you Chair. John Gray, councillor for West Ham ward. I am proposing to amend the Council Budget in 2 key areas.

(1) to increase Council tax by 1.99% for this year and use the money raised to set up two hardship funds for Newham families affected by Tory cuts to Council tax benefits and housing benefit curbs. This increase will raise £689k for each hardship fund.

(2) Also levy a 2% Council Tax precept for extra money specifically to help tackle the Adult Social Care Crisis and bed blocking in our local NHS hospitals.

If a simple majority of Councillors support this amendment then it "pauses" the budget for the Mayor to "reflect upon" the proposed change and consider bringing back his own amendment at a second meeting. You would need a two thirds majority of Councillors to overturn his proposal at that meeting, I really hope that we can come to an agreement over this with the Mayor.

I would like to put forward the arguments for Council tax first which will be an extra £18.81 per year for band D properties, that is £1.57 per month. I believe that there are 3 key arguments to increase Council tax.

But look there is a problem with Council tax enforcement in Newham. 8,949 claimants in Newham were in arrears in 2015/16, and that 5,386 of those with served with a court summons for late-payment, and 1,560 had bailiffs instructed against them. While I have no sympathy with those who can pay their Council tax but choose not to I believe many of those 1560, who have bailiffs sent in cannot pay because they live in poverty and that is different.

What an expensive waste of Newham Council officer time and money to pursue people who can't pay.

Also, according to the Department for Work & Pensions, the lower Benefit Cap will adversely affect around 800 families in Newham, leaving some of those with such serious rent shortfalls that they may fall into arrears and face eviction and homelessness

Firstly, I accept that Council tax is not a fair tax but the simple truth of the matter is that our entire taxation system in this country is unfair. VAT is unfair. Why should the poor and the rich pay exactly the same rate of tax on things they buy? Income tax is unfair, why should income tax rate of the Duke of Westminster with his £9 billion be nearly the same as a Newham head teacher? A recent report showed that the Poor pay nearly 50% of their income in tax compared to 35% by the rich.

Yes, Council Tax is unfair but until we get rid of this government and elect a progressive Labour government, it is the only tax raising game in town. A few months ago in an estate agents window for the first time I saw 2 homes for sale in Newham for over £1 million each. Newham is changing and not only in Stratford and Royal docks we are seeing large numbers of middle class and relatively wealthy newcomers moving into Newham.

So Council tax is unfair but it is banded and there is still Council tax benefit, which in theory, will protect those too poor to pay. However, the Tories have cut and cut this benefit as they have other benefits. These cuts are exactly what these hardship funds will be aimed at. Most of the people in this country & most Newham residents claiming Council tax and housing benefit are in work. Recently the Council, making tough choices, decided to cut the amount of support they would get, the hardship fund will help protect these Newham residents

The second reason is that by not increasing our council tax for the last 9 years, our taxable base has been diminished, year in and year out. By not even keeping up with inflation, our potential income has been going down and down. Since we have a government that seems determined to get rid of practically all central government grants and support for Councils as well as raising income in new ways, we must protect our taxable base.

The final reason, is that if we don’t raise Council tax, then this will undermine our argument that austerity and the Tories spending cuts are indeed unfair and even savage, because the Tories will say, how can Councils like Newham need more money when they haven’t needed to raise Council tax in the last decade?

Regarding social care this proposal to accept the governments offer to set an Adults Social Care Precept of 2% will increase the boroughs ability to support residents with their social care needs, help prevent bed blocking and prevent strain on our much needed local NHS resources. I wish there was other ways to raise the money but there isn’t. Again, the working poor will be protected by the hardship fund.

Council, while we cannot reverse Central Government Tory cuts on the vulnerable and low paid families in Newham and inadequate funding of social care and the NHS, we can try and mitigate it as best we can.

Council, please support these proposals.

Hardship funds & Social care crisis: Proposed amendments to Newham Council Budget 2017/18

This is my proposed amendment to the budget which the Newham Council meeting on Monday 27 February 2017 should consider.  See my previous post on this issue.

What I am hoping to do is persuade (there is a free vote) my fellow Labour Councillors on Monday to:-

(1) vote to increase Council tax by 1.99% for this year (which has not been increased for 9 years and is still less than expected inflation for this year) which will set up two hardship funds for Newham families affected by Tory cuts to Council tax benefits and housing benefit curbs.

(2) Also levy a 2% Council Tax precept for extra money specifically to help tackle the Adult Social Care Crisis and bed blocking in our local NHS hospitals.

If a simple majority of Councillors support this amendment then it "pauses" the budget for the Mayor to "reflect upon" the proposed change and consider bringing back his own amendment at a second meeting. You need a two thirds majority of Councillors to overturn his proposal at that meeting,  I really hope that we can come to an agreement over this with the Mayor.

While we cannot reverse Central Government Tory cuts on the vulnerable and low paid families in Newham, we can try and mitigate it as best we can.

"The increase in council tax will enable the Council :-

• to establish a Hardship Fund of £750,000 for Council Tax Reduction scheme claimants in Newham; 
• to establish a Discretionary Housing Payment “top-up” fund of £750,000 to better help those affected by the Government’s lower Benefit Cap. 

This is because:-

• That 8,949 Council Tax Reduction scheme claimants in Newham were in arrears in 2015/16, and that 5,386 of those with served with a court summons for late-payment, and 1,560 had bailiffs instructed against them; 
• Several London boroughs have either chosen not to introduce a Minimum Payment (charge) for CTR claimants or exempt disabled claimants or establish “Hardship Funds” for those in financial difficulty; 
• According to the Department for Work & Pensions, the lower Benefit Cap will adversely affect around 800 families in Newham, leaving some of those with such serious rent shortfalls that they may fall into arrears and face eviction and homelessness; 
• In 2016/17, DWP allocated Newham £1.552 million in Discretionary Housing Payment funding to help those facing the Bedroom Tax and Benefit Cap, and a similar sum is expected in 2017/18; 
• In nearby Tower Hamlets, a fund of up to £1 million is being established in 2017/18 to “top-up” the Government’s DHP pot. 
• The number of Council Tax Reduction scheme claimants falling into arrears and facing enforcement action makes it clear these charges are an unbearable strain on Newham’s poorest households, and that a Hardship Fund is needed; 
• The Government’s Discretionary Housing Payment funding is not sufficient to cover the rent shortfalls of tenants hit by the Bedroom Tax and the lower Benefit Cap, and that Newham should top this pot up from the General Fund. 
• The agreement to accept the governments offer to set an Adults Social Care Precept will increase the boroughs ability to support residents with their social care needs and prevent strain on our much needed local NHS resources

Agenda item 12: The Council’s Budget Framework 2017/18 – The Mayor’s Final Revenue Budget Proposals, Medium Term Budget Strategy to 2019/20 and Council Tax Setting Proposals

https://mgov.newham.gov.uk/documents/s110719/Final%20Budget%20Report%202017%202018%20Council%20final.pdf

That Council;  

 

1. Delete recommendation  1. And replace with:-Agree the Council’s General Fund Budget Requirement for 2017/18 be set at £233 million

2. Delete recommendation 4 and replace with :- Agree to accept the Government’s offer to set an Adults Social Care Precept of 2% on Council Tax in 2017/18

3. Delete recommendation  6 And replace with:-Agree the Newham Council element of Council Tax for 2017/18 be increased by 1.99% This results in a local element Band D level of £964.44

4. Agrees to establish:

                     i.            a Hardship Fund of £750,000 for Council Tax Reduction scheme claimants in Newham; and

                   ii.            to establish a Discretionary Housing Payment “top-up” fund of £750,000 to better help those affected by the Government’s lower Benefit Cap.

Agenda Item 13: Council Tax 2017/18

https://mgov.newham.gov.uk/documents/s110720/Council%20Tax%20Report%202017-18%20Council%20final.pdf

That Council

1. Delete 1. And replace with: Agree that the Newham Council element of Council Tax for 2017/18 be increase by 1.99% This results in a local element Band D level of £964.44

2. Delete 3. And replace with: Agree to accept the Government’s offer to set an Adults Social Care Precept of 2% on Council Tax in 2017/18      

Too Poor to Pay? Is this really the New Poll Tax?

This report is very disturbing. I have asked the Council for a response and agreed to meet with CPAG and Z2K. I will encourage other Councillors to do so as well. By coincidence I have just been to a Unison seminar where the practice of trying to force poor residents to pay Council tax was compared to the Poll Tax of the 1990s. Also, the dreadful practices of so many bailiffs was exposed. 

"New CPAG and Z2K report on council tax support in London

Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) and Zacchaeus 2000 Trust (Z2K) today release STILL TOO POOR TO PAY: three years of localised council tax support in London.

This is our third report looking at council tax support in London. It examines how London schemes have changed over the past three years and analyses the impact on claimants. The report has found that in 2015/16, over 98,000 low income Londoners were sent a court summons for non-payment of council tax and 19,000 were referred to bailiffs, a 51 per cent increase on the previous year.

Download STILL TOO POOR TO PAY

As you probably know, Newham is among those local authorities who have decided to charge claimants 20 per cent. Our report finds that this is having a serious impact on low income residents in the borough:

·         8949 Newham residents on the Council Tax Support Scheme were in arrears as of April 2016

·         4808 Newham residents have had additional ‘legal costs’ added to their bills

·         1,560 residents were referred to bailiffs in 2015/16.

CPAG and Z2K appreciate that the 10 per cent cut in council tax support funding in April 2013 came at a time when local authorities were already struggling with deep cuts to their budgets, and that the requirement to exempt pensioners from any new charges has added to the burden on working age claimants. We continue to call for a return to a fully funded, national system, or, at a minimum, that central government provides local authorities with 100 per cent subsidy.

However, in the event that council tax support remains localised, we call on Newham’s leadership to abolish your authority’s minimum payment and introduce 100 per cent support. We note that Camden council is currently consulting on doing just this. The falling number of council tax claimants in Camden, something common to your authority, has reduced the cost of its scheme, allowing the council to make this proposal. Camden also estimates that the proposal will reduce administration costs related to recovering relatively small debts from council tax support claimants and free up resources to pursue larger debts.

Despite the financial pressures Newham continues to face, we hope that you will work with your cabinet colleagues to follow the example of Camden and the six London boroughs who continue to provide 100 per cent support. The alternative is that your poorest residents will continue to experience the very real financial hardship, as outlined in our report.

We would welcome the opportunity to discuss the findings of our report and how to strengthen the support for Newham’s poorest residents. To arrange a meeting, please contact Alice Woudhuysen, London Campaign Manager at CPAG

Kind regards,

Alison Garnham| Chief Executive | Child Poverty Action Group
http://www.cpag.org.uk   

Joanna Kennedy, Chief Executive, Zacchaeus 2000 Trust (Z2K)
www.z2k.org

LOBOs and debt servicing of Council Tax Income

I am astonished at this graph. More evidence that LOBOs are indeed a National Scandal.
Hat tip https://twitter.com/DebtResistUK

Who owns all the land in the UK?

So 0.6% of the population own 47% of the land!
Check out "Inequality Briefing"

Their source for this picture is "Kevin Cahill’s comprehensive analysis of land ownership in Britain, Who Owns Britain (Canongate, 2002)".

It makes you think about all the wealthy landowners who pay no tax on their land  receive large subsidies from the Government and the EU.

Then contrast with the rest of us who have to pay Council tax (a form of Land tax?) on our properties. This doesn't seem fair at all.

However, I am not sure what is the percentage of land is owned by collective bodies (Forestry Commission, National trust etc). I would have thought this would be quite significant?  Would this make any difference to the figures?

The UK is often portrayed as an "overcrowded" Island. Yet when you go walking in the hills and countryside or when you fly over the UK is often doesn't seem like this. Even 30 minutes drive from East London you can walk in relatively empty countryside and hardly see a soul.  Only 7.5% of the UK is actually "under concrete".

Is one reason for sky high house prices in the UK this huge inequality of land ownership?

Tories Abuse Civil Service for Party Political Propaganda

Hat tip to Captain Swing for this tweet tonight by the Government Department Communities & Local Government in favour of Tory political propaganda about freezing Council tax.

It called on people to "lobby" their councils in support of Tory policies?

The DCLG twit(ter) claimed that this "infographic" was made at no cost?  So I said did it appear by "magic"? Did no-one do any work to make it appear?

This Government should not be using and paying civil servants to push controversial political agendas on official sites. Ignoring the fact that this particular argument is ignorant and stupid (in my opinion) if you really believe in a politically neutral civil service (never mind "localism") you should not allow them to run such blatant political propaganda.

That is the job of the Chief DCLG village idiot, Pickles and Tory central office, not paid civil servants.

West Ham Ward and the Cost of Living Crisis

Last Saturday I was out canvassing in my ward with local West Ham members (and Labour Candidates 2014)  John Whitworth and  Julianne Marriot.

The weather was dry with blue skies but it was noticeably cold.

It is strange how there tends to be particular topics that dominate a canvassing session. That day it was the Cost of Living.

At the one of the first houses I called at a young mum with two toddlers running around her legs gave me an ear bashing about Council tax bills. How some months her salary just runs out and there is no money to pay for food for the kids and the Council tax. She works for the civil service and has had just a 1% pay rise in the past 4 years. While bills and the cost of living has gone up and up.

After getting a summons last month from the Council for non payment she had to run up and down the high street to get £100 payday loan to prevent being taken to Court. I tried to explain that in Newham Council tax was low and there had not been an increase for a number of years.  Due to Government cuts it was vital that we get in as much Council tax as possible in order to pay for the local services. After a difficult start we left on fairly decent terms.

Getting an ear bashing from time to time for something you have little control over is good for anyone in an elected position.

Next difficult conversation was with a resident who had voted Labour in the past but was unsure next time. He wouldn't say what had changed his mind but did say he needed to support a Party that would increase his income the most. I gave him the Labour leaflet on the promise to freeze energy bills if elected. He said that is fine but he wants help now - not in 2015. We eventually came to a sort of agreement that despite mistakes, Labour was still the Party for ordinary working people while the Tories favoured the better off.

I'm not sure he was that convinced but at least we had a conversation on who can deliver for the majority and not the minority.

A little while later I met a pensioner who was worried about paying his electricity and gas bills. He was waiting nervously for his winter fuel payment. He was more impressed with the Labour promise to freeze energy prices but since he was wearing several layers of warm clothing and a woolen hat indoors it meant he needed help now as well. The fact that it was cold that day made you realise the important of heat. According to this report there are 5 million households in the UK in fuel poverty.

Roll on 2015.

Important Changes to Council Tax (off line Redbridge)

hat tip Barkingside 21 on FaceBook