Blackpool Council approves five per cent council tax rise with new bandings revealed

With precepts for fire and police included, this means council tax for an average band D property will increase to £2,170 – up from £2,063 this year.

Read more Council tax to rise again in Blackpool as town hall leaders seek £23m of savings.

Council leader Lynn Williams said increasing council tax was the only option in order to protect services in the face of national cutbacks.

But she said the resort would continue its ambitious regeneration programme and had succeeded in attracting £100m in additional government grants.

She told the council’s annual budget meeting: “I wish we didn’t have to increase council tax by the maximum allowable of five per cent.

“However we have no other option if we are to avoid slashing essential services for the most vulnerable and avoid another swathe of compulsory redundancies in public services that are already under enormous pressure.”

Coun Williams said spending had been set out against a backdrop of national cuts, warning “numerous local authorities have gone bankrupt”.

She added the council had been forced to plunge into its reserves to plug spending gaps, something the Government expected it to do.

But she said town hall finance officers hoped the outlook would improve, particularly with the council’s tourism assets expected to make more money in the coming year.

The council would also continue to invest in job creation, supporting the visitor economy and protecting community facilities.

Coun Don Clapham, interim leader of the Conservative group on the council, said Blackpool’s government settlement had increased by 10 per cent this year.

But he said he was concerned the council’s investments and loans could put it at financial risk.

He said: “From the £200m business loans fund, £105m has been drawn down. If any of the loans fail it could be a financial blow to the borough.

“The director of finances reassures me those loans are safe. I hope he is perfectly correct in that assumption.”

Coun Martin Mitchell, representing the Independents group on the council, said: “It’s difficult to vote for a budget that we have no confidence of being kept to.”

Bandings for 2023/24

band A £1,447; band B £1,688; band C £1,929; band D £2,170; band E £2,653; band F £3,135; band G £3,618; band F £4,341.