'Scrap Council Tax': Calls made by Glasgow councillor to scrap council tax
Calls have been made by a councillor in Glasgow for the Scottish Parliament to scrap council tax
Calls have been made for the current council tax system to be scrapped and a timetable for its replacement urgently released.
The Scottish Greens want a new property tax – based on what properties are worth now rather than 1991 estimates.
The Scottish Government has already decided to introduce a new mansion tax, and two new council tax bands for properties valued at over £1 million.
Glasgow councillor Jon Molyneux, Greens, is set to demand action on a complete overhaul of the the council tax system within the current Holyrood Parliament.
He said the city needs more changes to the tax system to pay for public services and handle the huge budget pressures coming from the equal pay and grading changes among other costs.
His motion, which will be presented at Thursday’s council meeting said: “Council recognises council tax is an inherently regressive tax which is based on outdated valuations.
“Council believes that both reformed local taxes and additional local tax powers are necessary to ensure Glasgow can sustainably fund local public services, invest in our workforce and reduce pressure on them, in the context of budget pressures arising from pay and grading, increased demand for services, and projected flat cash funding settlements.”
The motion added: “Council believes the new Scottish Government must urgently publish a timetable for replacing council tax within the current parliamentary term and that this should progress in tandem with any structural reforms of local government. The immediate opportunity would be to broaden the scope of the planned Council Tax (Scotland) Bill to be more than just tweaking upper tax bands.”
If agreed, the motion would instruct the council leader to write to the depute first minister asking for “a clear legislation and implementation timetable for replacing the council tax” among other measures.
It also asks if the “Scottish Government supports a modern, progressive property- and land- based tax system, as endorsed by this Council?”
Glasgow City Council stated its support for the reform of council tax in a recent consultation response to the Scottish Government.