IN the wake of last night's decision by a majority of Thurrock councillors to increase council tax across the borough by 4.99 per cent, Labour group leader Cllr John Kent - who opposed the rise - has spoken of his disappointment.

He says: ""Before last night's (Wednesday, 24 February) full council meeting, I reached out to all Conservative councillors asking them to reject the proposed council tax increase and support our plan to freeze council tax.

"I did that because we know growing numbers of local families are struggling to get by and more will do so as we emerge from the pandemic, the last thing they need is another Conservative council tax increase.

"Families need our help and support now more than ever as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic, but, unfortunately, not one Conservative councillor voted to freeze our council tax, every one voted for a near five per cent increase - meaning they have raised it by 21 per cent, or £292, since 2016.

"Everyone understands the enormous strain that Covid-19 has placed on council finances up and down the country and Thurrock is no different. However, the Conservatives' strategy of relying on returns on investments rather than sound budgeting has made the situation far worse.

"Thurrock Council has a budget gap of more than £40 million to plug in the next three years with a further pressure of £30 million for the two years after that.

"Under the Conservatives we have seen the number of council officers paid more than £100k rise by 260 per cent in three years and the cost of agency works rise above £7 million a year while the new £10 million civic offices vanity project continues and projects like the A13 widening and the new Stanford station go tens of millions of pounds over budget and run years behind schedule.

"The budget should have been the opportunity to set the foundations for a sustainable financial future for Thurrock. Instead we got the easy option of increasing council tax by the highest amount allowed and putting the difficult decisions off until after May's local elections.

"But those difficult decisions will have to be taken this summer - we know that bin collections are being reduced, that £30 charges for second parking permits are being introduced, and that charges for Social Care are being increased.

"We will have to wait to learn what else Thurrock Conservatives have planned for us."

Conservativ e group and council leader Cllr Rob Gledhill, said: "Dealing with the fallout from the pandemic has caused £17m worth of pressure to our council in this financial year. While the government has provided around £15m to help, there has still been an extra impact on council finances of around £2m.

"It has been a tough year for everyone, and the increases which have been agreed will ensure that we are able to provide care for those who need it most, something which is incredibly important at all times but is now more important than ever.

"An extra £2m raised through the adult social care precept will be used for paying for homecare, residential care for older people and to meet an increased demand for complex care. The £1.35m raised through the increase in council tax will be spent primarily on children's social care, providing support and care for those who are most vulnerable and in need. It is a shame not all members voted to support investment in adult social care.

"We will also be spending more on providing PPE (personal protective equipment) for staff and ensuring that our workplaces are Covid-secure for those staff who are working in frontline jobs, providing essential services to keep our borough clean, our roads safe, and our residents supported in these challenging times.

"Those who have been hit hardest by the impact of coronavirus and whose income has been severely affected may be eligible for the Local Council Tax Support Scheme (LCTS). This provides Thurrock residents of working age and who meet the criteria with an opportunity to reduce their council tax bill by up to 75 per cent. We have budgeted £8.5 million to this scheme, an increase of £700,000 on last year, to assist those who are most in need.

"The increase amounts to 99p a week for 70 per cent of households in the borough and of that amount 67p will go directly to funding social care. Thurrock's Council Tax is around £100 cheaper than neighbouring council areas and remains the lowest in Essex."