PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Council Tax Reduction Schemes (14 April 2021)

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many households were claiming under local council tax support schemes in (a) England, (b) the North West and (c) Stockport in the most recent period for which figures are available; and what additional support is available to local authorities that have experienced an increase in claimants for council tax support during that period.

Asked by:
Navendu Mishra (Labour)

Data on local council tax support claimants at the end of each quarter, at both England and local authority level, is available in this published table: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/961905/LCTS_claimants_2020-21_Q3.xlsx

Through the local tax income guarantee, the Government is compensating councils for 75% of irrecoverable losses in council tax and business rates income for 2020-21, including those as a result of increased local council tax support claimants. We are also providing councils with £670 million of new funding to enable them to continue providing local council tax support in 2021-22, at a time when caseloads may be higher than in previous years.

Answered by:
Luke Hall (Conservative)
22 April 2021