Lincolnshire County Council agrees local tax to rise by 4.99%

The increase equates to an extra £1.44 per week for a Band D property

Council tax bills in Lincolnshire will rise by 4.99% after the county council's executive approved its budget for 2024-25.

The Conservative-led authority expects to spend almost £650m, including £305m on adult care, £114m on children's services and £49m on highways.

The council tax hike equates to an extra £1.44 per week for a Band D property.

The final budget will be agreed at a meeting on 23 February.

Despite the increase and one-off government funding estimated to be about £8m to help with social care, the authority said it still faced additional cost pressures of £61m from rising prices and increased demand for services.

Martin Hill, leader of Lincolnshire County Council, said: "Once we know exactly how much extra funding we're getting from the government, we'll need to consider what impact this has on our plans for next year.

"However, it's important to recognise this is one-off funding and doesn't significantly change the long-term picture," he said.

"As a result, we still expect to have to use our reserves in future years to make up a funding shortfall."

Revised figures from Lincolnshire's district councils also showed that less income than expected would be raised through council tax and business rates, meaning the county council faced "a small budget deficit of £500,000 next year".

Mr Hill said the council faced additional costs of £61m due to rising prices

However Mr Hill said the authority, which receives about three-quarters of the money households pay in council tax, "remains in a relatively stable position" and there were no plans to cut services.

"Despite the proposed increase, our council tax rate [will] remain one of the lowest in the country for a shire county," he added.