Star comment: Voting on tax rise is tricky one
Now here's an idea to chew over. Why not have a referendum?
Before you all get carried away with excitement, the issue at stake is not going to change the future direction of the nation, but it could make a significant difference to your lives.
It's council tax, and how much you are prepared to pay. In a motion from Councillor Andy Boddington, Shropshire Council is being asked to explore how willing people would be to have a referendum on a Shropshire Council tax rise above 1.99 per cent.
The thinking is that a "low" 1.99 per cent rise means that smaller councils, that is the town and parish councils in the county, face having to find extra money locally for their local services. This has to be done by them making a greater call for cash from their local council tax payers.
The 1.99 per cent figure has great significance. It is how much Shropshire Council wants to raise the non-social care element of its council tax, and the rules say if you want to go above that figure you have to put it to the voters.
Councillor Boddington represents Ludlow North and it is obvious that his proposal is in its earliest stages, and may not proceed at all, depending on the view his councillor colleagues take when it is discussed at the council's meeting on July 21 at the Shirehall.
He is not directly calling for a referendum, but instead for Salopians to be sounded out to see what they think about having one. And no, we are not talking about having a referendum about a referendum – he says its can be done through the council's consultation called 'The Big Conversation'.
Putting all the mechanics of how it might happen to one side for a moment, the idea is an interesting one, posing a fundamental question which lies behind levels of tax. Are people prepared to pay more, to get more?
In elections, proposing to put up tax is risky, but maybe with a referendum there would be a different mindset.
What would the question be? Would you be happy for a council tax rise of over 1.99 per cent? Probably not, unless there was a promise of what you would get back for the extra outlay. Councillor Boddington is looking to support local, town and village, services. Writing that in to a referendum question might be tricky.
We have seen how a referendum can re-engage people with the democratic process, but people are going to need to know exactly what they are voting for.
