Daily Telegraph: Council tax could rise by £375 over next five years

By Philip Johnston, Home Editor

Council taxes could rise by £375 on average over the next five years, new figures show.

Forecasts produced by the TaxPayers' Alliance predicted Band D charges would increase, on average, by five per cent from £1,321 in 2007/8 to £1,691 in 2013.

This would more than double the council tax charge levied since Labour came to power in 1997, when the average bill was £700.

The prospect of further rises is causing renewed friction between local and central government.

Ministers say they have given local authorities all the money they have asked for and they should get on with delivering better services.

In a speech today, Hazel Blears, the Communities Secretary, will challenge town hall bosses to ''step up to the mark".

She will dispute local council claims that they are overburdened with red tape and performance targets, which the Government says it has slashed from 1,200 to 198.

"We have delivered local government unprecedented freedoms, financial flexibility and revenue-raising powers," Miss Blears proposes to say.

''You must now step up to the mark, embrace this new responsibility and demonstrate a strengthened approach to governing."

Miss Blears will add: ''We are giving local government the space it needs to thrive – they must now make the most of this once-in-a-generation opportunity and deliver on local people's priorities and take the tough decisions to make a positive difference."

She will also maintain that the cash for local authority funding in England and Wales was ''fair and affordable in a tight spending round".

The Comprehensive Spending Review foresees a rise in central grant to almost £26?billion in 2010/11 – a real terms increase of one per cent a year.

However, Sir Simon Milton, the chairman of the Local Government Association, called it "the worst settlement for local government in a decade.

He predicted above-inflation rises in bills for council taxpayers and businesses and a ''black hole in funding for the care of the elderly".

The LGA expects the elderly population to grow by 400,000 over the next three years, adding £9.3?billion to town hall bills for social services at home or in residential care.

Eric Pickles, the shadow communities secretary, said: "Labour ministers have heaped extra burdens on councils without providing the money to fund them.

"It is little wonder that council tax has doubled since 1997."

He added: "Town halls are already struggling to pay for vital services like care for the elderly – if Labour ministers continue to saddle town halls with more burdens and regulatory costs, services will either be cut or council tax bills will have to rise further."