Council tax is set to rise again in County Durham from April.

Council chiefs gave the green light to increase bills by almost five per cent at today’s meeting of Durham County Council (DCC).

The decision is set to add about £70 to the annual charge for a band D property, before other precepts for the police and fire services are added on.

It means an average band D home faces having to pay County Hall bosses £1,899.39 in 2019/20 – plus extras due to parish councils.

“Since the start of austerity in 2010 the county council has been forced to deliver more than £220m in savings,” said council leader Simon Henig.

“It’s a strange end of austerity, with at least £13m more to come in future years as a result of the government’s so-called Fair Funding Review.”

He added: “Mrs Thatcher could only have dreamed of cuts of this scale.”

Coun Henig also claimed the government had already assumed councils would increase council tax by the maximum 5.99 per cent allowed by law – leaving local authorities with ‘no choice’ but to follow suit.

And police and fire chiefs have been compelled to do the same to ensure their own dwindling budgets can make ends meet.

DCC’s 4.99 per cent rise is made up of a 2.99 per cent increase to core council tax and a further two per cent Adult Social Care levy.

Household bills in 2019/20 will be made up of precepts for:

  • Durham County Council – £1,477.05, a 2.99 per cent increase;
  • Durham County Council Adult Social Care levy – £113.60, a two per cent rise;
  • County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Authority – £103.50, a 2.95 per cent rise;
  • Durham Police, Crime and Victims’ Commissioner – £205.24, a 13.24 per cent rise.

Homes across the county are also facing a further average add-on of £94.09 for parish and town councils, although this varies between areas.

According to the council, it needs more than £400m to fund its spending plans for next year [2019/20].

The budget also included a £5.6m raid on the council’s savings to plug a gap in funding for children with special needs.

Proposed amendments to spending plans were submitted by the opposition Liberal Democrat, Conservative and Durham County Council Independent Group proposing measures such as penalties on landlords who leave properties stood empty, scrapping plans to move the council’s HQ and public wi-fi projects.

The budget proposed by the ruling Labour group was passed with 66 votes in favour, 30 against and four abstentions.