Darlington households to pay more council tax

A series of cutbacks was also announced by the council, as it looks to save money

Council tax bills for households in Darlington are set to increase by about 5%.

The rise was approved as the local authority takes urgent measures to stave off a financial crisis, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Cutbacks aimed at saving £4m per year and £16m by 2027-28 were also announced, and other savings are expected to be made through increased service charges.

The increase was criticised and voted down by opposition members, but the council said it was needed and was the second lowest rate in the North East.

Political spat

Darlington Conservatives criticised the Labour-Liberal Democrat-led administration for leaving residents "worse off".

Jonathan Dulston, group leader, told last week's council meeting: “We won’t support a council tax increase until ‘Captain Chaos’, that’s councillor Harker, actually starts to take ownership of his own failings.

"This year alone residents are worse off under a Labour administration given the short-sighted decisions you have made."

But in response, council leader Stephen Harker compared the Tories to William Micawber, a character in Charles Dickens’s David Copperfield, who is known for his faith that “something will turn up”.

Referencing the council tax rise, Mr Harker said: “Let’s not forget that despite all the hyperbole from our local Conservatives in their brief period in control of the council they too raised council tax to the maximum permitted.

"They wasted money on schemes such as the council rebranding, painting the borough blue."

It comes as Darlington Borough Council will receive £29.3m from the government’s funding settlement to deliver frontline services.

However, the local authority warned it does not go far enough to prevent the ongoing financial difficulty it faces.

Labour's Mandy Porter said: “Whilst we welcome the additional funding from the government, it is quite frankly a disgrace and is not anywhere near the amount actually required to support this local authority."

The concerns were echoed by the Green Party, with group leader Matthew Snedker adding: “If more help is not provided, we’re looking down the barrel of a gun."