HOUSEHOLDERS in Kirklees will pay yet another inflation-busting rise on their council tax bills.

The increase from April will be 4.9%, including demands from police and fire services.

It takes the benchmark band D charge from £1,131 to £1,187, a rise of £56.

Most households - the 76,000 in band A - will pay £791, an extra £37 a year.

Council leader Clr Kath Pinnock said there had been a welcome increase in Government grants.

This had gone mainly to education and social services, she said.

In addition, there had been a determined drive to find efficiency savings.

Clr Pinnock said: "This approach has yielded £7m this year and over the next three years we expect the council to make £19m of efficiency savings, the equivalent of 8% overall."

The increase is higher than last year's 4.1%.

Last year, the hung council ended up adopting Labour's budget.

But it was a different story last night after proposals by each of the four party groups were defeated.

It led to a tweaking of spending plans in 90 minutes of behind-the-scenes talks.

After councillors re-emerged, Labour's abstention led to the combined vote of the Lib-Dems and Greens winning the day.

Tory group leader Clr Robert Light, whose group voted against the plan, condemned the rise as too high.

He called for council cash reserves to be used to limit the increase.

Said Clr Light: "Since 1997 there has been a staggering 62% rise, £342 for the average payer.

"An average of £2,000 a year will certainly be achieved if there is a third Labour government."

Labour group leader Clr Mehboob Khan said the compromise was realistic given the fact that no single party was in control of the council.

"We are happy to have secured many measures, including an extra £1m for schools in special measures," he said.

Green leader Clr Andrew Cooper said he was delighted a £100,000 solar-powered street lighting project was to start.

Councils proposing rises above 5% had been warned they face capping from the Government.