Reform UK's Election Pledge Betrayal: A £67.47 Per Year Price Tag for Tax Cuts
Nigel Farage's Reform UK has faced criticism for allegedly betraying election promises to cut council tax after several councils it controls announced significant rate increases, including a proposed 3.99% increase in Kent and 5% rises in four other county councils.
The flagship local authority of the party, Kent County Council, is on track to deliver £100m in savings and income while protecting frontline services, according to its leader, Linden Kemkaran. However, opposition councillors have accused Reform of financial mismanagement and a "total betrayal" of election promises.
Kent's Liberal Democrat group claims that despite campaigning on a platform of tax cuts, the budget will see the average Band D household pay £67.47 more per year, amounting to nearly 4% increase. Labour councillor Alister Brady described this as "poor outcome given the hype and promises made at the election."
Critics argue that Reform's overspending has created a significant financial gap, necessitating rate increases above the maximum allowed by law. This stance is further complicated by the party's internal divisions and alleged lack of transparency.
Tony Travers, a visiting professor in the London School of Economics' department of government, noted that few, if any, councils have managed to achieve significantly below 5% council tax rises due to the financial squeeze they face.
The situation highlights concerns about Reform UK's ability to balance fiscal responsibility with its election promises and internal party dynamics. The proposed budget for Kent county council will be voted on next month, with many questioning whether Reform can deliver on its pre-election pledges amidst these challenges.
Nigel Farage's Reform UK has faced criticism for allegedly betraying election promises to cut council tax after several councils it controls announced significant rate increases, including a proposed 3.99% increase in Kent and 5% rises in four other county councils.
The flagship local authority of the party, Kent County Council, is on track to deliver £100m in savings and income while protecting frontline services, according to its leader, Linden Kemkaran. However, opposition councillors have accused Reform of financial mismanagement and a "total betrayal" of election promises.
Kent's Liberal Democrat group claims that despite campaigning on a platform of tax cuts, the budget will see the average Band D household pay £67.47 more per year, amounting to nearly 4% increase. Labour councillor Alister Brady described this as "poor outcome given the hype and promises made at the election."
Critics argue that Reform's overspending has created a significant financial gap, necessitating rate increases above the maximum allowed by law. This stance is further complicated by the party's internal divisions and alleged lack of transparency.
Tony Travers, a visiting professor in the London School of Economics' department of government, noted that few, if any, councils have managed to achieve significantly below 5% council tax rises due to the financial squeeze they face.
The situation highlights concerns about Reform UK's ability to balance fiscal responsibility with its election promises and internal party dynamics. The proposed budget for Kent county council will be voted on next month, with many questioning whether Reform can deliver on its pre-election pledges amidst these challenges.
UK councils control by reform uk is increasing council tax by 3.99% in kent & 5% in other counties, but they said they'd cut it lol what a joke 
! 
... Like I thought Reform UK was all about cutting taxes, but now it seems they're just gonna raise 'em and still manage to save a ton of cash, which is cool, right? 
I'm all over the place on this one... 
kent councils need more support not rate increases! 
i'm really disappointed in reform uk's commitment to their promises
I'm telling ya, back in my day we didn't see this kind of thing happenin'... Reform UK comes out swingin', promises all sorts of tax cuts and then BAM! You find out they're gonna stick a price tag on it that's like £67.47 every year for the average household... 4% increase? That's not what I signed up for, mate. 
. Reform UK needs to own up to this financial mess and come clean about their priorities - is it really about helping people or just lining the pockets of party bigwigs? 
. Can't trust these parties on anything anymore...
Their budget seems to be relying too much on "savings" which doesn't sound very sustainable to me. What went wrong? Shouldn't they've found ways to reduce costs instead of increasing taxes? 
. It's all about the internal party politics and lack of transparency 
. It's like they're expecting everyone to just roll with it and forget about the election promises 
. It's like they made it up as they went along and now they're passing the blame to us, the taxpayers 
.
It's all about the £67.47 per year price tag, which is, like, so steep 
. Can we trust Reform UK at all anymore? 
. Its all about taking responsibility for your actions and being honest with the people who elected you 
.