Council tax rise of 7.9 per cent approved

Councillor John Williams, leader of the the Labour-controlled Darlington Borough Council, revealed the final figure was lower than the 8.4 per cent initially proposed.

The increase was approved after a heated debate during a council meeting in the town hall.

It was agreed despite the Conservative group's bid to have the rise kept to a minimum.

The Tories proposed that a contribution of £1.65m be made from the council's revenue balances, resulting in a rise of only 2.4 per cent.

Councillor Tony Richmond, Conservative group leader, said the authority had reserves of about £8m after successfully winning legal battles with Durham County Council last year.

"We think it is reasonable that we should give some of that money back to the residents of Darlington," he said.

"It was their money in the first place, but the Labour council does not plan to let them have the benefit of that windfall."

Fellow Tory councillor Charles Johnson proposed an amendment to Coun Williams' budget plans, to allow for the smaller council tax rise.

He said of the 7.9 per cent increase: "It is well above the guidelines set by their own Labour Government. It is not a needy budget, it is a greedy budget.

"The people who live in or rent homes in Darlington deserve more than this."

But Coun Williams condemned the Tory proposal as financially "reckless in the extreme".

He told Conservative group members: "What you are proposing is splitting the civic purse asunder and throwing away the money. It is reckless in the extreme.

"It is a one-off raid on the balances that cannot be repeated. What would you do next year, when you have got a £1.65m black hole in the budget before you start?"

The authority must wait to learn whether it will be subject to capping by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

The Government had warned local authorities to keep council tax rises down to low single figures this year.