Council tax to rise in every borough of Greater Manchester from April 1

Residents are set to see their bills increase from April as every borough in Greater Manchester prepares to agree a council tax hike.

People in the UK are currently facing the prospect of paying out even more every month as the cost of living crisis is poised to deepen.

From the end of March the public can expect steep increases in outgoings as the lifting of the energy cap means gas and electricity bills will substantially rise.

Increasing inflation and national insurance contributions, along with water bills creeping up are all going to put the squeeze on residents.

And the spiralling cost of living will increase further as council tax is also due to go up from April 1.

Why is council tax increasing?

Local authorities across the country fund services, such as bin collections, street cleaning and children’s social care from their revenue budgets.

It is the government that sets out the maximum amount that town halls can raise council tax by, along with setting out a ringfenced amount that must be used to pay for adult social care.

Bosses say that under the current funding situation for local authorities by government, ‘it is expected that council tax is increased to the maximum’.

If a council opts not to increase to the maximum level of tax it can collect, it has to pay the costs of services another way.

This can be through using its reserves, but town halls are reluctant to tap into these except as a last resort as they are a finite amount of money that once used up will not be replaced.

However many councils in the region are already having to use reserves to balance their budgets for 2022/23, even with the rise in council tax.

Alongside increasing tax, authorities are planning to make further cuts and savings in order