London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 17, 2025

Sadiq Khan announces biggest hike in council tax, taking bills to £400

Sadiq Khan announces biggest hike in council tax, taking bills to £400

Mayor blames lack of government funding for need to increase bills by 8.8 per cent

Sadiq Khan has announced plans to increase council tax by the biggest amount since he became Mayor.

On Wednesday, he proposed increasing his share of bills by an average of £31.93 a year from next April, meaning the average London household will pay almost £400 a year to City Hall.

The increase includes an extra £20 announced by Mr Khan last week to help restore the finances of Transport for London.

His proposal for 2022/23 surpasses his previous record £31.59 increase in benchmark Band D bills that he imposed for the 2021/22 financial year.

However, the percentage increase being proposed – 8.8 per cent – is lower than the 9.5 per cent agreed for the current year.

The £31.93 increase consists of £20 for transport, £10 for policing and crime and £1.93 for the London Fire Brigade. It means Londoners will pay an extra £108 million to the Greater London Authority in council tax.

The total annual bill paid by many London households will be around £2,000 once their borough council adds its amount. Boroughs are likely to increase their bills by around five per cent.

Mr Khan said he had been forced to hike council tax bills because of a lack of government support for London.

But he faced a backlash last week when he said council tax bills would be increased to raise funds for TfL - a day after depriving TfL of £60m to £70m a year in income as a result of not requiring drivers to pay the congestion charge after 6pm from next February.

Last week the Department for Transport said TfL’s current bailout – to replace the reduction in fares income caused by the pandemic – would continue until February but no long-term agreement on funding has been agreed.

Mr Khan said: “The pandemic is continuing to have a serious impact on London’s finances and the Government is still refusing to properly fund our public services, particularly the Met police, Transport for London and the London Fire Brigade.

“Raising council tax by £2.66 per month is not something I want to do, but the Government is leaving us with no choice if we are to help prevent the collapse of TfL and ensure our police officers and firefighters have the resources they need.”

Susan Hall, leader of the GLA Conservatives, said: "Londoners can’t afford Sadiq Khan’s endless council tax hikes. Far too many people already feel squeezed by the cost of living in London. The mayor is only making the situation worse.”

Caroline Pidgeon, leader of the Lib-Dem group on the London Assembly, said: “While painful, this rise seems almost inevitable in the circumstances. When public services are so strapped for cash the mayor is using one of the few tools he has, that of raising council tax.

“However the reality is this is no way to ensure long term funding of the police, fire and especially transport services in the capital.

“The mayor needs to be looking at things like smart road user charging and the Government needs to start treating regional government seriously to prevent the starving of our vital frontline services. That must mean London being allowed to raise revenue through other forms of tax other than just regressive council tax.”

Ken Livingstone holds the record for the biggest increase in the Greater London Authority’s share of council tax bills, both in real terms and percentage-wise. In 2003/4, he increased his share of the precept by £50.52 ( a 29.1 per cent annual increase).

Under Mr Livingstone - who was first to be elected mayor of London - the precept rose from £123 in 2000 to £310 in 2008.


His successor Boris Johnson froze the City Hall precept in his first four-year term and reduced it annually in his second term, leaving it at £276 when Mr Khan became mayor in May 2016.

Mr Khan increased it by £4.02 in 2017/18, taking it to £280.02. In 2018/19 it rose £14.20 to £294.22.

This was followed by an increase of £26.29 in 19/20 (taking the total to £320.51), £11.56 in 2020/21 (£332.07), £31.59 in 21/22 (£363.66) and now the proposed £31.9 (which would mean a total precept of £395.59 in 2022/3).

Mr Khan’s draft budget for 2022/23, which is out for consultation, is due to be considered by the London Assembly on January 26, with the final proposals to be agreed on February 24.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hong Kong Industry Group Calls for HK$20 Billion Support Fund to Ease Property Market Stress
Joe Biden’s Post-Presidency Speaking Fees Face Weak Demand amid Corporate Reluctance
Charlie Kirk's murder will break the left's hateful cancel tactics
Kash Patel erupts at ‘buffoon’ Sen. Adam Schiff over Russiagate: ‘You are the biggest fraud’
Homeland Security says Emmy speech ‘fanning the flames of hatred’ after Einbinder’s ‘F— ICE’ remark
Charlie Kirk’s Alleged Assassin Tyler Robinson Faces Death Penalty as Charges Formally Announced
Actor, director, environmentalist Robert Redford dies at 89
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
JD Vance Says There Is “No Unity” with Those Who Celebrate Charlie Kirk’s Killing, and he is right!
Trump sues the 'New York Times' for an astronomical sum of 15 billion dollars
Florida Hospital Welcomes Its Largest-Ever Baby: Annan, Nearly Fourteen Pounds at Birth
U.S. and Britain Poised to Finalize Over $10 Billion in High-Tech, Nuclear and Defense Deals During Trump State Visit
China Finds Nvidia Violated Antitrust Laws in Mellanox Deal, Deepens Trade Tensions with US
US Air Force Begins Modifications on Qatar-Donated Jet Amid Plans to Use It as Air Force One
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
Elon Musk Retakes Lead as World’s Richest After Brief Ellison Surge
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
London Daily Podcast: London Massive Pro Democracy Rally, Musk Support, UK Economic Data and Premier League Results Mark Eventful Weekend
This Week in AI: Meta’s Superintelligence Push, xAI’s Ten Billion-Dollar Raise, Genesis AI’s Robotics Ambitions, Microsoft Restructuring, Amazon’s Million-Robot Milestone, and Google’s AlphaGenome Update
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Musk calls for new UK government at huge pro-democracy rally in London, but Britons have been brainwashed to obey instead of fighting for their human rights
Elon Musk responds to post calling for the murder of Erika Kirk, widow of Charlie Kirk: 'Either we fight back or they will kill us'
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
USA: Office Depot Employees Refused to Print Poster in Memory of Charlie Kirk – and Were Fired
Proposed U.S. Bill Would Allow Civil Suits Against Judges Who Release Repeat Violent Offenders
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
French Debt Downgrade Piles Pressure on Macron’s New Prime Minister
US and UK Near Tech, Nuclear and Whisky Deals Ahead of Trump Trip
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
Anesthesiologist Left Operation Mid-Surgery to Have Sex with Nurse
Tens of Thousands of Young Chinese Get Up Every Morning and Go to Work Where They Do Nothing
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
The German Owner of Politico Mathias Döpfner Eyes Further U.S. Media Expansion After Axel Springer Restructuring
Suspect Arrested: Utah Man in Custody for Charlie Kirk’s Fatal Shooting
In a politically motivated trial: Bolsonaro Sentenced to 27 Years for Plotting Coup After 2022 Defeat
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
ChatGPT CEO signals policy to alert authorities over suicidal youth after teen’s death
The British legal mafia hit back: Banksy mural of judge beating protester is scrubbed from London court
Surpassing Musk: Larry Ellison becomes the richest man in the world
Embarrassment for Starmer: He fired the ambassador photographed on Epstein’s 'pedophile island'
Manhunt after 'skilled sniper' shot Charlie Kirk. Footage: Suspect running on rooftop during panic
Effective Protest Results: Nepal’s Prime Minister Resigns as Youth-Led Unrest Shakes the Nation
Qatari prime minister says Netanyahu ‘killed any hope’ for Israeli hostages
King Charles and Prince Harry Share First In-Person Moment in 19 Months
×