The Conservative opposition leader of Ealing Council has said it is unfair for the council to blame a council tax rise on the Government.

Councillor Greg Stafford said a decade of poor decisions from Ealing Council’s Labour administration was the real cause.

The council has agreed to increase council tax by 1.99%, on top of a 3% social care precept, which is effectively the maximum possible increase.

Stafford said: “The reality is that over the last close to ten years of this Labour administration they have run down the reserves and wasted money on pet projects that no one wants. 

The latest example of this is Low Traffic Neighbourhoods, which they're spending tens of thousands of pounds on and now they’ve just had to pay out court costs to the Low Traffic Neighbourhoods objectors yesterday, which although it hasn’t been revealed will be another tens of thousands of pounds.

“One could perhaps forgive them for implementing them in the first place but given the enormous backlash in Ealing from residents, quite rightly, they should have removed them. 

“Ealing’s pigheaded refusal to do so again shows how little they understand what residents on the ground actually want.

“Money has just been wasted left right and centre. They’ve run down reserves and that’s why they’re having to put up council tax.

“It’s very disingenuous for them to blame the Government. They should have balanced their budgets over the last ten years much more effectively and stopped wasting money on ideological pet projects.

“The Government has provided £225 million since the start of the coronavirus to Ealing, so it’s had a significant input of money from the government. Any claims that they’ve had an unfair settlement is just not true at all.”

Yet Councillor Julian Bell, leader of Ealing Council, said: “This year’s funding settlement has tied our hands, leaving us in the impossible position of increasing council tax or cutting crucial services at a time when local people are relying on them more than ever.

"All this is doing is passing the costs on to residents at a time when many can least afford it.”

However, many residents in the area questioned the increase and claimed the council was not delivering key services.

One Ealing resident, Ben Webber, said: “What do you get for your money? Not one street in my whole area was gritted after the ice and snow we had recently, bins are collected every couple of weeks despite them being overflowing due to lockdown, so you end up doing it yourself. 

“Surely all the extra cash those crooks are going to take in from LTNs should cover it instead of tapping us up.”

Another Ealing resident, Joshua Kelvin Twumasi, added: “Are they also recommending a rise in council performance next year?”

Clare Castro said: “I think people would be more amenable to a rise in council tax if they were confident that it would be spent wisely. Unfortunately, recent decisions made by the council have left many of us doubting this.”

But some residents do support the rise.

Debbie Gray said: “Of course we need a council tax increase, the money to replace central government funding for the responsibilities that were decentralised a few years ago with inadequate funding then, and reduced funding year on year, has to come from somewhere and councils have few options about where they can raise funds.”

Ealing Council did not respond to a request for comment.

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