City council reopens consultation on cuts to council tax benefits following legal threat

Bristol City Council has reopened a consultation on proposals to cut its council tax reduction scheme following a legal threat that argued the decision would breach equalities duties.

The council, which said it is considering cuts to the scheme in the face of a challenging financial position, received a letter before claim from ACORN Bristol, a community union, in September.

According to the union, more than 23,000 low-income households in the city benefit from the council tax benefit.

The consultation regards changes to the scheme for working-aged people. Pensioners are protected from changes under government rules, the council said.

Lawyers at Irwin Mitchell, acting on behalf of ACORN, wrote in the pre-action protocol letter that the proposed cuts would breach the Equality Act 2010, making them unlawful because of their disproportionate effect on women, carers, disabled people and BME people.

They also claimed that the consultation was missing vital information that consultees would have needed to respond and contained no detail of the current scheme, who was eligible, how a proposed discretionary fund would work or how financial hardship would be measured for the poorest to continue to qualify for the scheme.

The council reopened its consultation on Monday (30 October) following an internal review.

The consultation notes that the council is currently in a "challenging financial position" and that the budget agreed upon in February 2023 was done on the basis that the council tax reduction scheme would be reviewed for working-aged people.

"This was to make a saving of around £3 million after collection rates and monies collected on behalf of Avon Fire Authority and Police and Crime Commissioner for Avon and Somerset are considered," the consultation document adds.

According to the council, Bristol has been one of the few authorities not to reduce council tax support since 2013, despite the reduction in Government funding.

The consultation is open for a further four weeks and will end on 26 November.

Announcing the consultation, Cllr Craig Cheney, Mayor for City Economy, Finance and Performance, said: “Like most councils, we face an extremely challenging financial position. This is due to several reasons, such as the national cost of living crisis and more than a decade of ongoing austerity led by this Government.

“Due to these factors we continue to be put in situations where difficult decisions must be made. Making cuts to any service is not a decision we take lightly; the stark reality is that like many councils we are struggling and need to find ways to make savings. 

Adam Carey