COUNCIL tax bills are set to soar by almost four times the rate of inflation after the final calculations were agreed by councillors this week.

Householders across South Bucks will be forced to stump up almost ten per cent more per year to pay for Buckinghamshire County Council, Thames Valley Police and district council services.

Residents in a Band D house in High Wycombe town will have to pay out £761.48 compared to £699.55 last year.

Marlow Band D householders will have to fork out an extra £66 with a new tax bill of £768.85 and residents in Princes Risborough will pay £776.76, an increase of £63.

Charges for other areas can be seen in the tables on this page.

Police put in for the biggest increase in funding, asking for an extra 11.7 per cent while Buckinghamshire County Council will get 9.8 per cent more.

Wycombe District Council has increased its charges by 3.68 per cent, Chiltern District Council by 2.5 per cent while South Bucks District Council has asked for 8.4 per cent more.

Chairman of Buckinghamshire County Council's policy and resources committee, David Shakespeare, said the increases were necessary because of central Government underfunding. The extra money collected from the council tax will increase the education budget by £13.1 million; environmental services by £1.7 million, including a £500,000 grant for highway maintenance; and social services by £4.8 million. This includes money for disabled adults, children, family and elderly people's services.

Cllr Shakespeare said: "I make no apology for saying that, unlike central Government, we cannot simply say 'education, education, education'.

"Instead we have to say education, social services and highways and, indeed, the many other services that protect and enhance people's quality of life.

"The money we got from central Government is a good settlement but I'm afraid that we did less well than the average.

"We could dramatically curtail our social services provision but I do not believe that members of the public would find this solution acceptable.

"The only remaining alternative is to find the extra resources by increasing the council tax."

Conservative Wycombe District councillor Pam Priestley said Wycombe District Council should have asked residents for less money.

The Conservative group wanted the council's share of the bill to be only £79.40 for a Band D property as opposed to the £86.56 agreed.

This would have seen the bills received by Band D householders cut by 13 pence per week.

She said: "I believe we owe it to the taxpayer to make savings wherever possible. There are a variety of areas where savings can be made."

Labour Wycombe District councillor Adam Gielgud said: "If we lower the council tax we will have rubbishy services. We want to provide the services that residents in the Wycombe District deserve.

"This present Labour Government has given local councils the best settlement they have had for years."

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