Figures obtained by Stockport Labour Group show that the number of courts summons for Council Tax arrears has increased by 10% compared to last year.
Figures provided by Stockport Council show that since 1st April 2013, 10,225 courts summons have been issued to residents in Stockport.
This comes after the Council cut Council Tax support earlier this year – this was as a result of the Lib Dem and Tory Government’s decision to scrap Council Tax Benefit and devolve the system to local councils whilst cutting funding for support schemes by 10%.
679 Council Tax accounts affected by the Council’s new Council Tax Support scheme have received a courts summons for non-payment of Council Tax. However, only 24 of these accounts have applied for a discretionary payment; that’s only 3.5% of those cases which are subject to a courts summons. The Council established a Discretionary Support Scheme to help people that couldn’t pay their Council Tax bill as a result of the Council’s new scheme, but these figures show that most people are not applying for support.
Cllr Kate Butler, Stockport Labour Group’s spokesperson on revenue, benefits and welfare reform, said: “The figures we have obtained are very worrying. Of course the Council must collect the Council Tax that is needed to pay for services, but the increase in the number of people being taken to court for not keeping up with their payments is a matter of great concern.
“The Council clearly isn’t doing enough to help people who are struggling to make their payments. The combination of the cut in support for Council Tax, the Bedroom Tax and other changes to the support people receive is forcing more people into debt and risking court action. The worst cost of living crisis since 1870, with gas and electricity bills continuing to rise, is also clearly having a damaging effect on people’s finances in Stockport.”
[Since the initial publication of this article, Stockport Council has clarified details of how courts summons are issued and has stated that the number of courts summons issued between 1st April 2013 and 15th October 2013 was 10% higher than at the same time last year. This article has been updated to reflect this new information which was not made available to us at the time of publication.]