Council tax freeze called into question
8 Jan 08
Legality of SNP Government policy under scrutiny
The Scottish Government's policy of freezing council tax is under question for possible illegality, the Scotsman reports today.
John Swinney, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, has set aside £70 million to allocate to councils that agree not to raise their council tax, but has said that those who put through an increase will not receive any of the money.
It is understood that the Convention of Scotttish Local Authorities (COSLA) has received legal advice that such selective payments would not constitute a payment for a service delivered by local authorities and therefore would be outwith ministers' powers.
Ministers are said to be examining ways of implementing the policy.