YouGov polling for Tax Justice Scotland, a joint campaign backed by Oxfam Scotland and more than 50 other organisations, shows that five times as many people in Scotland support reforming Council Tax in the next Parliament as oppose it. More than half of Scots want political parties to commit to reform, rising to more than eight in ten when excluding people who said ‘don’t know’.
The polling also shows overwhelming support for a fairer system, with just 2% of Scots supporting the current approach where households in lower-value homes often pay a higher share of their income than those in much more valuable properties. Excluding ‘don’t knows’, nearly two-thirds of people who expressed a view support using current property values as the basis for Council Tax bills, rather than relying on outdated 1991 valuations.
Oxfam Scotland believes fairer taxation, particularly of wealth, is a key lever to help tackle poverty and combat deep economic inequality. Whilst also calling for better wealth taxes at UK level, campaigners say devolved powers over local tax make fairer taxation of property wealth a key priority in Scotland.
Campaigners say Council Tax unfairness doesn’t just hurt communities by starving councils of the cash they need, it compounds existing inequalities. Low-income households, a large number of which are headed by women, including single parent households, can pay some of the highest bills relative to their income, with built in safeguards not fit for purpose.
With the Scottish election approaching, Oxfam Scotland is calling on all parties to move beyond seemingly endless debate and delay and set out clear, concrete plans to replace Council Tax with a fairer alternative by 2031 at the latest.
Jamie Livingstone, Head of Oxfam Scotland, said: “Council Tax is unfair and stuck in a time warp, piling pressure on those with lower-incomes while letting many of the wealthiest households off lightly. Holyrood could already fill a museum with copies of the reports, consultations, and debates on Council Tax - and that’s where this relic really belongs.
“The public has made it clear: they don’t support this outdated, unfair system, and neither should politicians. Ahead of the election, it’s time for all parties to set out concrete plans to finally deliver a credible replacement: an up-to-date tax on property wealth that is fair, proportional, and properly funds crucial services, from social care to action to end child poverty.”
/ENDS
For more information and interviews, please contact: Rebecca Lozza, Oxfam Media and Communications Adviser, Scotland and Wales: rlozza1@oxfam.org.uk / 07917738450
Notes to Editors
- Find details of the YouGov polling carried out on behalf of Tax Justice Scotland in January on Scots’ attitudes to Council Tax here.
- Read Oxfam Scotland’s paper Broken Beyond Repair: Council Tax and the case for a fairer system to tax property wealth here.
