More than 1.2 million Londoners face massive council tax hike next year

More than 1.2 million London residents could face eye-watering increases in their council tax bills as local authority leaders look to plug black holes in their budgets.

Five London boroughs have been given permission by government ministers to hike council tax by more than 5%, the usual ceiling for increases, without requiring a local referendum to address central government cuts.

A sixth, Bromley Council , has asked the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government to be given the same ability.

Wandsworth Council, one of the councils given special dispensation, has announced that council tax bills are set to double for residents next year.

The local authority, which covers areas such as Putney, Battersea, Balham and Tooting, has announced plans to increase the council tax for an average Band D property from £1,020 to £1,978 from April 2027. It is a rise of £958, 94% higher than the current levy.

Wandsworth Council said council tax will double for the average household in 2027/28 Charlotte Lillywhite/LDRS It will take the Tory minority-run borough - which was once hailed by Margaret Thatcher as her favourite local authority - from having the lowest council tax in the country to around average levels.

Wandsworth town hall blamed the Labour government’s Fair Funding reforms - which will see spending shifted from affluent parts of London and the South East to more deprived parts of the country - for reducing the borough's funding by £84million a year.

Four other London councils find themselves with a similar deficit following the Fair Funding shake-up. Kensington and Chelsea, Westminster, City of London and Hammersmith and Fulham have also been given the green light to go beyond the 5% cap for rate rises.

If Bromley is allowed to do the same, it would cover six boroughs with a combined population of around 1.2 million people.

Westminster City Council warned over the summer it is facing an “unprecedented” £100 million drop in government funding over the next three years. It warned it could mean a council tax rise of at least 75% in the borough.

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