Ealing To Take Part in New Council Tax Recovery Pilot
Data sharing scheme with HMRC has been launched
Tax and employment information is to be shared with Ealing Council in a scheme to recover unpaid Council Tax.
The authority is one of 29 taking part in a trial to use debt information sharing powers, introduced by the Digital Economy Act (2017).
Council Tax - currently amounting to around £3 billion is still outstanding throughout the country from the introduction of council tax in 1993.
Through this new trial, non-paying customers who are employed or have an income will be contacted to start paying their debts, or they will have their debt deducted directly from their earnings through their employer.
The Act allows councils to obtain employer and income information from HMRC for people who have failed to pay their Council Tax and have an order to pay by the local magistrates’ court.
Ealing Council works with debt advice providers to support vulnerable residents who are struggling with debt.
The pilot will last one year before being reviewed, with a decision as to whether to roll out the programme to all councils in England and Wales.
In order to provide transparency about what data is being shared each pilot is registered on www.gov.uk.
Councillor Bassam Mahfouz, Ealing cabinet member for finance and leisure said: “Council tax pays for key vital services that support the most vulnerable in our borough and it is grossly unfair that the minority of residents who do not pay their council tax, benefit from the majority that do pay.
“Ealing is facing government cuts that mean that for every pound the council used to receive in government grants, it now gets a mere 36p. This scheme will allow us to directly target those that do not pay, ensuring they contribute to the services everyone in the borough receives.
“I strongly urge those that genuinely struggle to pay their council tax to contact the council or independent debt advice services before the debt becomes unmanageable.”
Debt advice is available from Stepchange, www.stepchange.org, who can be contacted on 0800 1381111.
Anybody who finds themselves in a position where they cannot pay their Council Tax should contact the local authority immediately to discuss their situation.
16 August 2019