Posted 08.07.14
As overall Council Tax collection rates remain high, new official figures also reveal that town halls failed to collect £2.5 billion of Council Tax last year.
Welcoming the overall results, ministers said the new figures also showed that some councils still had scope to step up their efforts against Council Tax dodgers in order to safeguard services and keep Council Tax down for law-abiding citizens who pay their bills.
Overall collection rates remained roughly the same, with 97% of Council Tax recouped by local authorities last year, compared to 97.4% in 2012 to 2013.
The Government has worked with local authorities to reduce Council Tax. Since 2010, this has cut average bills in England by more than 11% in real-terms. In contrast the period between 1997 and 2010 saw Council Tax increase in real-terms by 47%, doubling a typical band D bill to £120 a month.
