Council top for tax collection

8.51.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Sun 20th Jul 2008

• FOR the third year in a row Richmond Council is the most efficient authority in London when it comes to collecting Council Tax.

This year the Council achieved a collection rate of 98.7% up from the 98.5% that was achieved for 2006/07. Richmond Council came in ahead of the City of London and the London Borough of Sutton. The collection of business rates in the borough has also improved with the council now being the second best in London.

Commenting on the figures Cllr Stephen Knight, Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Resources on Richmond Council said: "This is very good news. It might seem strange to be boasting about being efficient tax collectors, and of course we will always provide advice and help wherever possible to people who are struggling to pay, but in our tight financial situation it is absolutely vital to promptly collect what is due if we are to provide value for money services for our residents. We already get less money per head of population than any other council in England from the government and as a consequence have one of the highest levels of council tax. However we work hard to make the most of what we do have. To achieve this it is important that everyone pays their share. It is very simple; if Council Tax collection rates are high it helps keep tax levels down for everyone. If we are not collecting what we should then tax levels rise further as the majority end up subsidising the minority. Earlier this year the Audit Commission gave us four out of four for efficient use of resources - for the second year in a row. These Council Tax collection figures are further evidence that we are an extremely efficiently run Council."