ONCHAN ratepayers face a rise in their bills of 1.48 per cent.
The below-inflation increase was agreed on Monday at the commissioners’ meeting.
Rates will be set at 275p in the pound. That’s 4p more than last year.
John Quaye, lead member for finance and general purposes, told the meeting: ‘Looking towards the forthcoming financial year, the board of commissioners remain acutely aware of the financial difficulties facing the Isle of Man and the requirements of central government to rebalance the books, as the loss of income through the VAT sharing agreement with the UK is “managed out”.
‘This has direct bearing on local authorities as additional costs are passed down and documents such as the Scope of Government Report suggest pushing the provision of further services out to local authorities. Further to this the commissioners remain mindful of the costs of financing the local government final salary pension scheme and the potential impact if the funding requirement increases at the next review at the end of the coming financial year.’
He said the rise would be about £5.60 a year for the average household in the district.
He added: ‘We will also be seeking to implement a number of cost-saving measures and to reduce capital expenditure to only those areas deemed necessary. This will reduce the projected deficit for the coming year to approximately £19,000 which will be financed from the district’s reserves. It is the intention of the commissioners to utilise careful financial management to bring the authority back into surplus in the coming years whilst protecting the ratepayer from excessive volatility in the rate. The target remains to keep any rate increases below inflation which, as measured by the retail price index, stood at 2.9% to November 2012. The overall increase in the rates has averaged less than 1% per year since 2008.
‘The commissioners remain committed to approaching their finances in a proactive and forward looking manner and I am therefore happy to propose this recommendation of a rate of 275p for the financial year 2013-2014.’
Most local authorities in the island have yet to set their rates for the next financial year.