Council tax bills up by £10 to help fund West Midlands Police
Council taxpayers in the West Midlands will see a £10 rise in their annual bills to boost funding for the region's police force.
West Midlands Police and Crime Panel has signed off on the increase, which was proposed by Police and Crime Commissioner David Jamieson.
It means that from April the police precept for a Band D property will be £162.55. It follows a public consultation on police funding, with Mr Jamieson initially proposing a £24 increase – the same level it went up in 2019-20.
The £10 spike – around 20p a week – is the biggest increase allowed without a public vote.
It has been questioned by West Midlands Mayor Andy Street, who says he has no intention of raising a mayoral precept should he be elected for a second term in May.
Mr Jamieson said rise in council tax meant people in the West Midlands would still pay less that neighbouring forces with higher precepts, such as Warwickshire, Staffordshire and West Mercia.
But he said the 2020-21 budget would not make up for "a decade of under-investment in police forces".
He added: "This budget provides some stability, but the government have failed to provide West Midlands Police with the right resources to see the force standstill."
West Midlands Police is expected to get an extra £50m this year as part of Government plans to boost police resources.
Labour PCC Mr Jamieson, who is standing down in May, has been a long time critic of Government cuts to police resources, having seen his own force lose £175m and 2,100 officers over the last decade.
However, Tories in the region have criticised his record in office, claiming crime has spiralled out of control under his watch while he spent more than £30m refurbishing his office.
Mr Street attempted to levy an additional charge on council tax payers after he was elected in 2017, but saw his plan rejected by Labour council leaders on the West Midlands Combined Authority board.
He said: "We accepted that result and everything we have done has not cost the taxpayer of the West Midlands a single penny.
"I have no intention to putting a council tax precept on in future. Obviously that is in sharp contrast with the PCC. I would say to him, how successful has he been in making the case for further investment which doesn't involve increasing the precept?"
