Andy Burnham sets out council tax precept proposals

Greater Manchester Mayor, Andy Burnham has set out plans to freeze the council tax precept in Greater Manchester which goes towards funding the Mayor’s office in 2024/25.

Alongside a freeze to the mayoral precept, a consultation has also launched on increasing the amount levied through council tax going towards emergency services in the city-region. If approved, further investment in Greater Manchester Police (GMP) and Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) will fund more frontline officers and fire engines over the coming year and cover the funding gap from below-inflation government grants for services.

The Mayor’s proposals are recommendations for the Police, Fire and Crime Panel and the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to consider at the end of the month. Final recommendations across all budgets will be considered for approval by the special budget GMCA on 9 February.

The consultation on increasing the police precept paid by Greater Manchester households also proposes further improvements at GMP to improve response times, prosecutions and neighbourhood and public transport network policing. Plans also follow GMP being recognised as the most improved police force in the country in a recent report by His Majesty’s Inspectorate for Police and Fire (HMICFRS).

Increased funding for GMFRS will help to maintain firefighter and engine numbers amid inflationary pressures, and follows the service being named ‘Emergency Service of the Year’ at the 2023 FIRE Magazine Excellence in Fire and Emergency Awards.

For a Band B property, the police precept will equate to a £10.11 rise in annual council tax, with a further £3.89 increase for the fire service. The public consultation on the proposed council tax precept rises will take place via the city-region’s consultation website until 24th January.

Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, said of proposals:

“I am proposing to freeze the Mayor’s precept for the coming financial year, recognising people are still under pressure with the cost of living. We need to think very carefully before we ask people for more money. 

“I am really proud of the work of our emergency services in Greater Manchester, but they need more support to help them continue to improve.

“It is unfortunate that we haven’t received the funding package we needed from central government which doesn’t fully cover inflation. This has left me with no choice but to propose an increase to the Police and Fire precepts, but I don’t want to further add to the local tax burden which is why I am proposing to freeze the Mayor’s precept.

“I have seen first-hand the significant improvements GMP have made over the last year, culminating in an overall positive HMICFRC inspection. GMP call answering is the fastest in the country, officers are providing a much improved response to emergency incidents, neighbourhood crime is falling and there have been big successes in disrupting organised crime.

“However, we are still on the journey to make GMP the best force in the country and combined with real terms cut in the national policing grant, I am compelled to ask our local council taxpayers to pay a modest increase to help GMP continue to provide the service our communities deserve to keep them safe. I want us to have a police force that everyone can be proud of that is victim-centred and reduces crime.

“Similarly, with GMFRS, there have been huge improvements in recent years, but we want to go further and invest in more fire engines and protection and prevention work to keep our communities safe.”

Deputy Mayor for Policing, Crime, Fire and Criminal Justice, Kate Green, added:

“I’m delighted with the improvements we’ve seen in recent years in GMP and GMFRS and that communities can see what a difference strong leadership, prioritising things that matter to people and investing in frontline services has made.

“We are not complacent, and we recognise that more needs to be done so it is vital that we continue to invest in the areas that are important to our communities by doing more in neighbourhood and public transport policing, responding to incidents quicker and arresting and prosecuting more offenders as well as recruiting more frontline officers, purchasing more fire engines and protecting people from fire incidents.”