East Lindsey District Council approves tax rise

East Lindsey District Council has approved a 2.97% increase in council tax for 2025/26.

During a meeting on Wednesday, members approved the proposed budget for the next financial year, setting the annual bill for a Band D property at £171.54. This represents an increase of £4.95 annually, or an additional 9.5p per week. The rise is expected to generate an additional £396,000.

Presenting the budget, portfolio holder for finance Thomas Kemp (Conservative) explained that developing the budget for 2025/26 and planning for 2029/30 had been "time-consuming and difficult".

He stated: "Whilst this authority may have a new finance portfolio holder, the challenges before us remain the same, but with a different emphasis.

"Driven not by world-wide events as we have previously experienced, but by government policy changes. This means we are receiving significantly less government support than in previous years, with the removal of the rural services delivery grant.

"Further significant changes are planned for the coming year in terms of business rates and future-year settlements, plus devolution and local government re-organisation. So there can be no doubt there will be challenges ahead."

He later explained that around 71% of properties in the district are Band A-C, meaning the charges will be lower than outlined in the report.

An amendment tabled by the local Labour Party group included boosting the Household Support Fund by £250,000 to support families continuing to suffer from the cost of living crisis and creating a reserve of £330,000 to begin installing solar panels on some of the council's car parks.

Councillor Rosalind Jackson (Labour) insisted the investment in solar would create an ongoing revenue stream for the council and assist in the transition to net zero by 2040.

"This is an investment in our planet and in the energy sovereignty of our country," she said.

To their surprise, senior members accepted the amendment and absorbed it into the proposed budget.

Joint deputy chief executive, corporate development and S151 officer Christine Marshall explained that the proposals would need to be formally worked up but assured members that the council's reserves were in a "healthy condition.