Kensington, Chelsea & Fulham
Conservatives

Hammersmith and Fulham Council Tax DOWN 3% again

28 January 2009

Since council tax was introduced in 1993 the average bill in Hammersmith & Fulham increased by 131 per cent under the previous Labour council. This particularly impacted on residents with low to moderate fixed incomes, who struggled to meet these rises.

In the current economic crisis, where living costs are rising fast, our third 3% Council Tax reduction will help everybody, particularly those on low and fixed incomes, giving them at least one bill that will not be going up.

Conservatives have managed to reduce taxes whilst delivering value for money services. This is reflected in the fact that we are one of only a few councils to receive the independent Audit Commission’s top rating for the quality of our services. Scores for resident satisfaction with council services also continue to rise year on year and are now among the best in London.

How have we managed to deliver top quality services and reduce tax? By waging war on waste, introducing competition to council services and by cutting the £160 million debt that we inherited from the previous Labour administration.

Examples of how we have saved money include:

Saving £4 million by reducing our reliance on agency staff.
Market testing £90 million of council services which will deliver up to £5 million in savings while improving service quality.
Reducing the historic debt by £20 million, saving council tax payers £1.7 million a year in interest.
Promoting smarter working, where cutting accommodation costs is saving £1.1 million.
Cutting communications costs by £300,000 to the lowest levels in London.
Let me assure you we won’t be resting on our laurels. There is still much more to do: waste to tackle, debt to reduce and services to improve.


Our mission is clear: lower taxes, less waste and better council services.


Cllr Stephen Greenhalgh
Leader of H&F Council