'Everything's collapsing but they want more money'

Windsor and Maidenhead residents could be hit by a 25% council tax rise later this year.

The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead's (RBWM) council leader Simon Werner said he and his colleagues inherited a "horror show", and extra money was needed to stave off effective bankruptcy.

While the authority had taken "difficult decisions" over the last 18 months, it would need to "continue to make tough calls", he said.

The council's residents currently pay about £1,700 a year in council tax for a Band D property, but in Newbury similar properties cost about £2,300 a year.

Mr Werner and other Liberal Democrats and independents who run RBWM have asked the government to raise council tax by 20% above the 4.99% cap.

They said previous Conservative leaders' decisions to cut and freeze council tax had cost the authority about £30m a year.

For people living in a Band D property, their council tax would increase by £320.

But that could still leave the charge in Windsor and Maidenhead lower than in other Berkshire boroughs.

The government might not make its decision over the potential council tax hike until the end of February, which could be just days before the authority has to set its budget.

In that case, it might have to declare effective bankruptcy anyway.

Some people in Windsor on Wednesday were unhappy with the council and the potential charges.

David Shefford, who lives in the town, said: "[Council tax] keeps going up and up all the time and your wages and your pension don't go up. It's a disgrace really.

"I used to clean the streets in Windsor. Go down to the river [Thames] and have a look at the state of the place down there - it's filthy, it's a disgrace and that's what we're paying for."

Richard Micallef said while he could afford the increase, the prospect of it happening was "annoying".

"Windsor is all about tourism," he said.

"They forget the people that live here. The locals are forgotten about.

"They don't seem to look after the roads, they're just basically not looking after anything... everything seems to be collapsing but they all want more money.

"When are they going to start looking after the people that live here rather than worrying about the people that want to visit here?"

Lynne Jones, deputy leader of RBWM, blamed the "deterioration" of Windsor on the fact "council tax has been artificially low", saying income from it "cannot cope" with the increases in demand for services.

"There is a structural deficit that has taken place over a decade," she claimed.

She also said the council would try to "shield" certain groups from the increase.

"The most vulnerable people will not see that hike this year," she said.

Technically councils cannot go bankrupt but they can issue a section 114 notice, which means they cannot do any new spending.

In that case, they must come back with a new budget within 21 days that they can afford.

Local authorities that have issued section 114 notices include Nottingham, Birmingham and Woking.

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