Commissioner asks for average council tax precept increase of £20 for Northamptonshire police and fire services

The Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner for Northamptonshire has confirmed he will ask for a combined £20 increase - based on a Band D home - for the police and fire services council tax precepts.

A public consultation was launched in December 2022 and ran until January 17, 2023, asking residents how much they would be willing to pay on their council tax bills for the two emergency services.

Following the consultation, Commissioner Stephen Mold has asked for a £15 increase on the policing precept and a £5 increase on the fire service precept - based on the average home, which is a Band D property. The proposals will be discussed by the county’s Police, Fire and Crime Panel on February 2.

Mr Mold said: “I understand the pressures that every household is facing this year and it is difficult to ask people to pay more. Despite this, Northamptonshire residents have also told me that they support the investments that have been made and want them to continue.”

Police force

According to the commissioner, Northamptonshire Police is on target to have the greatest number of police officers that it has ever had - 1,500 by March 2023.

Mr Mold said: “Meeting the increased costs of more police officers and a growing force is just about sustainable with this level of precept increase, but we will continue to face considerable pressure on our budget and will need to make savings.

“Taxpayers in Northamptonshire pay more towards their local police force than taxpayers in many other counties. This isn’t fair and I will continue to fight our corner to ensure that this county gets the level of Government funding that it deserves.”

Funding for Northamptonshire Police is made up of grants from the Home Office and the contribution taxpayers make through the council tax precept. Around 45 percent of the funding comes from the precept, with the other 55 percent coming from central Government.

Fire service

Mr Mold said that even with an increase of £5, Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service remains “poorly funded and will be hit hard by rising costs, which could undermine the

progress”.

He added: “Because most of our funding comes from local taxpayers, an increase of £5 makes an enormous difference to our budget.

“Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service has moved forward enormously in the last few years, performance has improved markedly, and we have invested in new fire appliances to make sure our firefighters have the right tools to do the job. But years of under-funding have made a mark and the Service does not have the reserves to draw on in times of pressure.”

According to the commissioner, local council taxpayers foot most of the bill for funding Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service – 64 percent. Businesses pay 26 percent through business rates and around 10 percent comes from local Government.

Mr Mold hopes the increase will be enough to maintain progress made by the fire service.

“Both Northamptonshire Police and Northamptonshire Fire and Rescue Service will also look to share costs wherever possible, to give the best value for the tax local people pay,” Mr Mold continued.