Tens of millions of pensioners dwelling alone might be hit with larger council tax payments if Housing Secretary Angela Rayner scraps the 25% single occupier low cost, doubtlessly compounding monetary pressures as additionally they face shedding winter gas funds.
Evaluation reveals that round half of the 8.4 million individuals affected by the potential abolition of the single-person council tax low cost are retirees. The low cost at the moment reduces the typical Band D council tax invoice by roughly £543 per yr and saves the general public purse about £3 billion yearly, in accordance with the Institute for Fiscal Research (IFS).
Angela Rayner, who didn’t rule out eradicating the low cost this week, is beneath fireplace for the potential affect on older individuals, a lot of whom are already combating rising dwelling prices. The announcement follows Chancellor Rachel Reeves’s determination to means-test winter gas funds, which beforehand supplied as much as £300 to round 10 million pensioners, aiming to avoid wasting £1.4 billion for the Treasury.
Jan Shortt, normal secretary of the Nationwide Pensioners Conference, criticised the potential removing of the low cost, calling it an “unforgivable betrayal” of older individuals that would pressure them to surrender their properties. “It seems older people, who have no voice in parliament, are seen as easy targets,” she stated.
Graham Stuart, a Conservative MP, echoed these issues within the Home of Commons, highlighting the pressure on pensioners who’re shedding each their winter gas funds and council tax reductions. “That is taking hundreds of pounds from those that can least afford it. We cannot have such an unnecessary impact on pensioners,” he stated.
Talking within the Commons, Rayner assured there have been no present plans to extend council tax, however didn’t decide to retaining the single-person low cost. When pressed on the problem, she responded, “This Government is about making sure that working people are better off, and we intend to do that.”
Knowledge from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Native Authorities exhibits that round 8.4 million properties in England profit from the 25% low cost for single occupants, with a further 253,000 households qualifying because of different residents being disregarded for council tax functions. Figures from the Workplace for Nationwide Statistics (ONS) point out that half of these dwelling alone are aged over 65.
The biggest variety of single-person households eligible for the low cost are present in Birmingham, the place 152,000 individuals profit from the tax saving. Different high hotspots embody retiree-friendly rural areas reminiscent of Cornwall, Somerset, and North Yorkshire. Because the UK’s inhabitants ages, the variety of individuals dwelling alone is rising, with an 8% improve in single-occupant households recorded over the previous decade.
Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, warned that older individuals dwelling alone already face vital challenges with fastened family prices that don’t diminish for single occupants. She acknowledged, “If the single person discount for council tax was abolished, many pensioners—particularly widows—could find their finances severely strained, especially if they also lose their Winter Fuel Payment.”
A spokesperson for the Housing Division maintained that the federal government at the moment has no plans to reform council tax, however the potential adjustments have already sparked concern amongst pensioner advocacy teams and MPs alike.
