Bradford Council's 9.99% Council Tax rise approved

Ilkley residents will pay an extra 9.99% Council Tax from April after the coming year’s Bradford Council budget was approved after a chaotic start to the meeting with members of the public shouting “shame” and “Hinchcliffe out” from the public gallery.

One long serving Councillor called the 2025/26 Budget the most difficult he’d seen in his 34 years in office, with others calling for Council Leader Susan Hinchcliffe to resign.

The budget, which will include millions of pounds worth of cuts as well as the Council Tax rise, was voted through after all the Labour Councillors in the authority voted for the proposals – except Councillor Joe Wheatley from Bingley, who expressed disappointment with the lack of support for local Government from the national Labour Government and voted against his own party’s budget.

The budget comes at a time when Bradford Council’s finances are in a perilous state.

Last year, the Government granted the authority permission to borrow money to fund its services, and this year alone the authority will borrow £127m.

The money needs to be paid back with interest, and at the budget meeting Councillors pointed out it will take years for this debt to be paid off.

There was a chaotic start to the meeting. Before the debate started, members of the public began shouting “shame” and “Hinchcliffe out” from the public gallery.

After warnings to stop shouting and allow the meeting to continue were ignored, security were called, and protestors appeared to manhandle one of the security guards who attempted to remove a banner for the Acorn Union from the balcony.

The meeting was paused for almost an hour and a half as police arrived and issued a dispersal order, which required the protesters to leave.

The Council had argued that the increase in Council Tax would mean less borrowing was needed, and when the meeting re-started Cllr Hinchcliffe said the authority was “stuck between a rock and a hard place.”

She added:

“Even with the 9.99 per cent increase, Council Tax in Bradford will still be lower than the National average for a Council of our size.

“If we increase Council Tax by around £2 or £3 pounds a week we can reduce borrowing over the next 20 years by £111m.

“As for the opposition parties, if you were truthful you’d admit there is no other way forward. If you vote against this you don’t have the guts to tell the truth to the people you represent. Hard pressed families need Council services, and without the extra income those services won’t be there.”

Addressing claims that spending on projects such as Bradford Live and One City Park had led to the financial crisis, Cllr Hinchcliffe said:

“It is children and adult’s social care that is the pressure, not regeneration.”

The Green Party was the only party to put forward an alternative budget, which they said would bring the required Council Tax rise down to 9.4 per cent.

Councillor Neil Whittaker, Green finance lead, described the planned 9.99 per cent tax rise as “extraordinary.”

Referring to the Council’s financial situation, he said:

“This isn’t something that has happened in the last one or two years, it is over the last decade. Actions should have been taken years ago.”

He described the 9.99 per cent rise, approved by Government last month, as “a done deal between the Labour Council and the Labour Government, done in a back room.

“We’ve been failed by the Labour group not being prudent or future focused. They didn’t see what was coming. It went from ‘nothing to see here’ to a financial crisis.

“After 10 years of Labour being in control of Bradford a financial crisis is upon us.”

Deputy Leader Councillor Imran Khan said the budget was the only way to ensure Bradford had a bright future, adding:

“we refuse to accept the managed decline the opposition groups offer.”

Councillor Alex Ross Shaw, Executive for Regeneration, Planning and Transport added:

“The Tories only vision for Bradford is one of continuous decline.”

Councillor Ralph Berry (Lab, Wibsey) said:

“This is the most difficult budget that I have seen in my 34 years of local government.”

He criticised the lack of options presented by other parties to fix Bradford’s finances, saying:

“You can’t oppose cuts and oppose tax rises at the same time.”

Although the Conservatives did not present an alternative budget, Councillor Mike Pollard, financial lead for the Conservative opposition, suggested selling One City Park and scrapping plans for a new swimming pool at Squire Lane could reduce the Council Tax burden on Bradford residents.

Conservative Leader Councillor Rebecca Poulsen said:

“Cllr Hinchcliffe may blame everyone else, but it was under her watch. That we got to this position.”

Councillor Talat Sajawal, Leader of the Bradford Independents, said:

“The people of Bradford will today see the true face of the Labour party. The leadership needs to go – you must resign.”

Liberal Democrat Leader Councillor Brendan Stubbs said:

“Today is another dark day for the people of Bradford.

“A budget in front of us that heaps huge pressure on residents, a budget that barely papers over the financial disaster, this Labour executive has caused. A budget that doesn’t even come close to fixing the mess.

“Residents in Bradford trusted you to look out for them, steward the Council’s finances well, protect services, and grow the district’s economy. You failed on every front.

“This budget is a disgrace.”

Councillor Joe Wheatley (Lab, Bingley) said he was proud of many things his party had achieved, but was disappointed with the lack of support for local Councils since the General Election.

In a shocking move, he announced he would not vote for his party’s budget, saying:

“I’m voting against the 10 per cent increase, not because I think my colleagues are wrong, but because I believe the Government can do more.”

Leader of the Greens, Councillor Matt Edwards, said Labour had ignored financial warning signs for years, claiming the leadership “fiddled while Rome burns.”

He added:

"Bradford is in a worse financial position that almost anywhere in this country.”

Cllr Hinchcliffe thanked Councillors for the robust debate. She argued the Independents were quick to “oppose, oppose, oppose” but added:

"Councils have to come up with solutions, you offer no solutions, no new ideas.”

She said the Conservatives:

“can’t celebrate any investment in Bradford – you don’t want us to succeed.”

She added:

“Your Government knew you were going to lose so you trashed the economy and left Labour your mess.”

When it came to the vote, 46 Councillors voted in favour of the Labour budget and 39 against, with one abstention.