{"id":680749,"date":"2026-01-07T21:14:17","date_gmt":"2026-01-07T21:14:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/680749\/"},"modified":"2026-01-07T21:14:17","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T21:14:17","slug":"two-thirds-of-edinburgh-households-could-see-council-tax-hike","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/680749\/","title":{"rendered":"Two-thirds of Edinburgh households could see council tax hike"},"content":{"rendered":"

REFORMS to the council tax system<\/a> in Scotland could see two thirds of households in Edinburgh<\/a> move up at least one council tax<\/a> bracket, compared to 24% Scotland-wide.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Scottish Government last year launched a report and consultation<\/a> into\u00a0possible changes\u00a0to the council tax system, which has been described as \u201coutdated\u201d and \u201cregressive\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This would\u00a0likely mean\u00a0that property valuations, which were set in 1991, before council tax regulations came into force, would be updated to modern valuations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A council response to the Scottish\u00a0Government\u2019s consultation, citing analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS)<\/a>, said that almost two-thirds of properties in Edinburgh would jump up at least one council tax band.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Edinburgh<\/a>Edinburgh Council\u2019s tax decisions are made at Edinburgh\u2019s City Chambers (pictured above) (C) Kim Traynor<\/p>\n

The consultation, run jointly by\u00a0the Scottish Government and COSLA, the umbrella organisation for Scottish councils, has seen local authorities and people in Scotland give their views on how changes should take shape.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This process is\u00a0attempting\u00a0to\u00a0identify\u00a0how best to structure changes, with options including the complete elimination of council tax on the table.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The government could, alternatively, choose to keep the existing band system for council tax but update it with modern property values.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Another\u00a0option\u00a0is to introduce new, progressive council tax bands and change the way they are applied.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The consultation also sought views on whether these bands should be set nationally or locally, making them reflective of local housing markets, with fewer band jumps in high-price areas.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Also being considered are \u201cdeferral schemes\u201d,\u00a0which would allow \u201casset-rich, income-poor\u201d households to defer payment of increased council tax liabilities until property sale or transfer, with associated eligibility criteria.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Local authorities have now began publishing their responses to council tax changes.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The City of Edinburgh Council, in\u00a0its\u00a0response, prepared for next week\u2019s Finance and Resources Committee, pointed out some of the issues with revaluation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The report, prepared by council officers, states: \u201cIndependent analysis produced by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) indicates that, due to relative growth in house values since 1992 , even under a pure revaluation, almost two-thirds of properties in Edinburgh would be expected to go up at least one\u00a0council\u00a0tax band, compared to 24% for Scotland as a whole.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIn contrast, only around 5% of properties would go down one or more bands in Edinburgh, compared to 26% for Scotland as a whole.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe percentage of properties seeing an increase in\u00a0council\u00a0tax liability would rise further if a more progressive national model were adopted.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe additional income raised from these changes would, however, be offset by a corresponding reduction in\u00a0general\u00a0revenue\u00a0funding, such that the overall level of funding available to the\u00a0council would remain unchanged.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Shona<\/a>Shona Robison has been Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government since 2023 and wants to \u201cexamine ways to make Council Tax fairer\u201d together with partners (C) Scottish Government<\/p>\n

Edinburgh\u2019s property valuations, proportionally to the rest of Scotland, have skyrocketed since 1991.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A report prepared for the Scottish Government\u2019s council tax inquiry into property valuations showed that Edinburgh now has the highest mean property value in the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Edinburgh\u2019s property valuations have increased by 448% since the early\u00a01990s, while property valuations in East Lothian, which topped the list,\u00a0rose a staggering 500%.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A Scottish Government spokesperson today said: \u201cThe aim of this work is to examine whether consensus around a unified position on council tax could be achieved \u2013 rather than advocating for a specific reform.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMinisters have been clear that any future changes to council tax must be informed by robust evidence and wide public debate.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs part of our joint programme of engagement with COSLA, we are seeking views on these matters.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government has previously said: \u201c\u201cBy working closely with local authorities and listening to the public, we will be seeking a consensus on a local taxation system that is fairer, financially sustainable and fits a modern Scotland.\u201d<\/p>\n

Council tax rates are\u00a0ultimately decided\u00a0upon by the local authority, but the bands and council tax rates are\u00a0generally consistent\u00a0across Scotland.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Increases to council tax were frozen in 2024\/25 due to the pressures the tax hikes were putting on lower-income people in Scotland, and the government now views reform as essential.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Under the current rules, a home in band A valued at \u00a324,000 (in 1991) would pay council tax equivalent to 3.96% of the property value, where as a band H house worth \u00a3240,000 would pay a rate of 1.45%.<\/p>\n

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