Could a council tax hike be on the cards?

East Dunbartonshire Council chiefs say that the shortfall for the next financial year has been caused by a combination of a five per cent reduction in the General Revenue Grant allocated by the Scottish Government and a national reduction in the level of Non-Domestic rates.

A Special Council Meeting has been organised on Thursday, January 12, where a council tax hike will be one of the options on the table.

The council have to confirm to the Scottish Government that they will accept their funding settlement for 2016/17 by January 13.

Council leader Rhondda Geekie said: “Whilst we are told we can now increase council tax by up to three per cent to increase our income, following the nine year freeze, we still need to agree as a council that we are prepared to do that before we can translate that additional funding into our budget plans.”