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Council tax: 'City is failing in one of its promary tasks'

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Published Date: 13 June 2009
BEING charged with the collection of any form of tax is an unenviable task. There will always be people who will attempt to avoid paying, whether it be income tax, VAT or council tax – and some will go to great lengths to do so. But that is not an excuse for failing, or letting people away with it.
So while it is possible to have some sympathy with the city council over their failure to collect £15 million in unpaid tax over the past year it has to be seen to a degree to be failing in one of its primary tasks.

Aall this is happening at a tim
e when the Capital's finances are in a appalling state and the council city is facing a black-hole of more than £92 million over four years.

As a result, a whole raft of cost saving measures will be introduced which will impact not only on frontline services but will adversely affect the quality of delivery the council can afford. That is grossly unfair on those who pay their taxes and are entitled to something in return.

It is difficult for the council to plead poverty when part of the solution to its financial problems lies in its own hands.

While the council might point to an improved collection rate of close to 93 per cent, it still lags behind the national average and last year it recorded the second worst performance of all Scotland's local authorities, who jointly failed to collect £112 million.

On that dismal record alone we should all breathe a collective sigh of relief that plans to introduce a local income tax that would have been collected by local authorities were abandoned.

It is unrealistic given the transient nature of some people to expect the city council to recoup anything like the £117 million it has failed to collect since the council was formed 12 years ago. But it owes the tens of thousands of honest people who duly pay what is asked of them to make a greater effort to recoup us much as it can.

Doubtless there will be many who are genuinely having trouble paying, especially in the current recession.

But most will not be in that position – and as a matter of some urgency the council should identify and chase with much more vigour those who can afford to pay but simply choose not to do so.



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  • Last Updated: 13 June 2009 10:43 AM
  • Source: Edinburgh Evening News
  • Location: Edinburgh
  • Related Topics: Council tax
 
1

mr broon,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 13:02:37
After the ham-fisted introduction of the TORY Community Charge(POLL TAX)a widespread campaign of 'CAN PAY, WON'T PAY' forever, permanently damaged the collection of local taxation in Scotland?

Tens of thousands of people, for various reasons, dropped off the Electoral Roll to avoid paying the Poll Tax, not only here in Scotland but also in England and Wales.

The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities(COSLA) and Local Government Association for England and Wales found that prior to the introduction of the POLL TAX
in these countries collection rates for the old domestic rates were much higher.

For obvious reasons, the Tories never considered introducing the POLL TAX in Northern Ireland where the domestic rating system is still used to this day.
However, despite all the security problems encountered during the 30 year IRA insurgency, the collection rate for domestic rates was hardly affected!

After a widespread campaign of civil disobedience and downright local tax evasion in Scotland, and some of the worst riots ever seen in England and Wales, the Tory Government was humiliated into abandoning this flagship policy, and ultimately it brought down Thatcher!

At that time, it left over £950 million(YouGov figures) of unpaid POLL TAX throughout Scotland, and England and Wales, and when the new Council Tax took its place this further compounded non-payment.

The backlog of unpaid POLL TAX still remains high to this day in Scotland, and all the Scots Tory Party did was dig a political grave for itself and, more importantly, show those sections of society who will never pay up, how to avoid/evade their responsibilities!

In Edinburgh alone, it still has £92 million of outstanding POLL TAX to collect from defaulters!
Strangely enough, over the next 4 years this is the "black hole" deficit that the city council will have to do without!


2

Plodjfriss, Hammer of the Numpties,

Edinburgh 13/06/2009 13:21:05
I'm very concerned. If they can't carry out their promary tasks then there's just no hope for the sucondary and tortiary ones.
3

Davie Lad,

Edinburgh 14/06/2009 14:12:32
What idiot put this guff down? This is way off target as any right thinking person would NOT pay this disgustingly unfair tax. Try and grasp the fact that we pay too much already then scribe something that makes some sense instead of this inane drivel.

 

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