CRAIG Hoy, a Conservative MSP for South Scotland, has slammed the SNP government for proposing council tax increases of up to 22.5%.
The MSP’s criticism comes after the SNP government opened up a consultation proposing council tax rises of between 7.5 per cent and 22.5 per cent for those living in properties in Bands E-H.
Those in Midlothian in Band E would face 7.5 per cent rises, those in Band F properties would be hit by 12.5%, Band G residents would see bills rise by 17.5% and those in Band H would see the biggest rises at 22.5%.
Mr Hoy says that the hikes will “terrify” local residents in Midlothian who are already grappling with a cost-of-living crisis and have recently faced a 5 per cent increase on their Council Tax bill.
Craig Hoy MSP says local residents should not be bearing the brunt of the SNP’s failures to properly fund Midlothian during their 16 years in office.
Research by the Scottish Conservatives has uncovered how much extra residents in each band in Midlothian would pay as a result and how many households would be affected.
In Midlothian, a current Band E payer would pay £149.26 more, a Band F payer would pay £307.68 more, a Band G payer would face a rise of £519.11 on their Council Tax, and Band H payers would see their Council Tax rise by £834.99.
The increases in payment would affect 13,134 properties in Midlothian.
Craig Hoy MSP said: “These bombshell council tax rises being proposed by the SNP Government will terrify residents in Midlothian.
“Many of them are already grappling with the cost-of-living crisis, so increases of this scale would be a hammer blow to their personal and household finances.
“People across Midlothian should not be bearing the brunt of the SNP failing to give the Council the resources they have needed year after year.
“Typically, SNP-Green ministers are once again passing the buck to councils like Midlothian to make impossible decisions. On this occasion, it looks as though residents are set to pay the price with a huge hike in their council tax bills after having already faced the second-highest Council Tax rise in Scotland this year.
“I know how worried people are by these proposals and I’d urge everyone to make SNP-Green ministers aware of their concerns through their consultation.”
The consultation on the proposals can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/news/council-tax-consultation/
