Council tax up by 5%

HOUSEHOLDERS across Kirklees face a 5% rise in their council tax bills.

But council leaders say the rise could have been less if the Government had given them more cash backing.

They say that if the council had got a fairer share of Government cash, bills could have been much lower.

Council leader Clr Kath Pinnock said: "The overall budget and final council tax figure is significantly dependent on the level of the Government's support grant.

"The final announcement of this only came last week - and short-changed Kirklees, compared with what was initially announced in December.

"The support grant amounts to over £1m less than we were anticipating.

"This is equal to around 1% in terms of council tax, £9.30 per year on the average tax.

"The council has been lobbying for many years for a fairer deal for its council taxpayers.

"If we received the same as Calderdale we would get over £21m more in support grants," added Clr Pinnock.