Council tax hike on the cards for Exeter residents

Council tax payers in Exeter are likely to pay around £5 more for the city council’s services in the coming year.

The executive committee ran the rule over the likely level of tax bills, with the final figure to be decided next month after more meetings and consultations.

The city council’s ‘take’ is only a small proportion of the overall council tax bill, with Devon County Council and the fire and police services also taking shares on top.

Members heard that the council faced “significant challenges” as the government’s support for local authorities continued to decrease, and the likelihood of a general election in 2024 had added more uncertainty.

The council will need to increase income and cut costs, and will have to make savings of around £4 million over the next four years.

The city’s director of finance Dave Hodgson told the meeting that while inflation had pushed the council’s costs up by four per cent or more, the government had set a cap of three per cent on increases in council tax.

“We are not even standing still,” he warned.