Sedgemoor District Council delays council tax setting (From Bridgwater Mercury)
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Sedgemoor District Council delays council tax setting
4:38pm Tuesday 14th February 2012 in News
Sedgemoor District Council delays council tax setting
BOSSES at Sedgemoor District Council have adjourned its council tax setting process until next week following a dispute with Hinkley Point owners EDF Energy.
The authority had been due to set its rates on Tuesday but the meeting was adjourned for council chiefs to ask questions to EDF about the amount of money the authority will receive.
EDF has been funding Sedgemoor’s scrutiny of its application to the Infrastructure Planning Commission to build a new nuclear power station at Hinkley Point under an arrangement between the parties.
However, the latest payment has led to a dispute between the parties over payment, which the council says needs sorting out before it will set its tax.
Council leader Duncan McGinty said: “It is entirely improper that we use extremely scarce public money to fund the development process relating to a privately-owned commercial asset of a company.
“The IPC will be expecting to see properly researched evidence from the councils as to information contained in EDF’s application and we are not prepared to pay for this from local tax. This is a core business for EDF, who will be spending many millions on their application. They will also be buying in the best legal and technical advice as they need. We need to be able to properly challenge their claims and this does not come cheap given the resources they have put behind their own professional team.”
An EDF Energy spokesman said: “The voluntary funding arrangement with Sedgemoor District Council was entered into in 2009. There was no legal requirement for EDF Energy to do this but the company voluntarily entered the agreement because it was, and is, the right thing to do.
“The Hinkley Point C project has now entered a different phase since EDF Energy's application was accepted for examination by the IPC, changing the amount and type of work the councils will need to do in future. EDF is continuing to support councils to help them provide input to the IPC.
“The company remains committed to working with the community as the project progresses and continues to have a responsibility to its customers - many of whom live in Somerset - to keep control of its costs.”
Sedgemoor District Council must legally set its council tax by March 10 – the council will meet again on February 24.
Comments(9)
grisleyreg
says...
9:18pm Tue 14 Feb 12
BaldCarl2
says...
10:14pm Tue 14 Feb 12
grisleyreg wrote:Eh?
What ever they decide its odds on the lower income families will suffer the most, its Sedgemoor council policy
Poorer families are either on benefits (pay no council tax) or tend to live in small houses and therefore pay less council than richer families who tend to live in larger houses and pay more council tax.
Simple mathematics tells you that a x% increase across the board would impact higher income families the most.
If higher income families have a corresponding higher increase in their council tax, then they would suffer the most.
AlmightyOne
says...
11:23pm Tue 14 Feb 12
BaldCarl2 wrote:So BaldCarl2 we assume by your post that your are in the higher income range then.....lucky you!!!!!!!!
grisleyreg wrote:Eh?
What ever they decide its odds on the lower income families will suffer the most, its Sedgemoor council policy
Poorer families are either on benefits (pay no council tax) or tend to live in small houses and therefore pay less council than richer families who tend to live in larger houses and pay more council tax.
Simple mathematics tells you that a x% increase across the board would impact higher income families the most.
If higher income families have a corresponding higher increase in their council tax, then they would suffer the most.
RustyKnight
says...
11:01am Thu 16 Feb 12
It sounds like a good way of slowing down EDF, refuse to pay your Council tax so SDC can't give EDF the money!
African Violet
says...
9:36pm Thu 16 Feb 12
latitude
says...
10:11am Fri 17 Feb 12
African Violet wrote:But this information is wrong. SDC did not get £13,000,000; this figure is the amount EDF have provided councils overall, therefore shared between SCC, WSDC and SDC.
No more town or village council tax rises to pay for bad accounting. The media reported that Sedgemoor District Council is spending £250,000 per month for investigations relating to the new Hinckley Point C. The media stated that EDF paid them £13,000,000 3 years ago. So do the maths, what has happened to £4,000,000. This should have been enough to last another 16 months. They still have another year of investigations to do and want more money. Have there been itemised accounts published to explain the discrepancy???
African Violet
says...
2:12pm Fri 17 Feb 12
latitude wrote:Just goes to show how much rubbish information the public are being fed by the media. Pity they don't give the correct facts always instead of making up stories! Anyway, after the meeting today between Mr Cameron and President Sarkozy all our money worries will be over!
African Violet wrote: No more town or village council tax rises to pay for bad accounting. The media reported that Sedgemoor District Council is spending £250,000 per month for investigations relating to the new Hinckley Point C. The media stated that EDF paid them £13,000,000 3 years ago. So do the maths, what has happened to £4,000,000. This should have been enough to last another 16 months. They still have another year of investigations to do and want more money. Have there been itemised accounts published to explain the discrepancy???But this information is wrong. SDC did not get £13,000,000; this figure is the amount EDF have provided councils overall, therefore shared between SCC, WSDC and SDC.
latitude
says...
5:09pm Fri 17 Feb 12
BaldCarl2 says...
6:17pm Tue 14 Feb 12
It's not like you provide any worthwhile services is it.