Closed petition Base council tax rates on income, not property value

Closed on 8 May 2012

The current basis for charging council tax is archaic and unfair. The system makes many assumptions about peoples living circumstances that are not always correct and does not make any allowances for changes in their circumstances.
For example, If a person has to take a pay cut, their income tax payments are adjusted accordingly, but not their council tax. Because council tax is charged per property rather than per person, a person who lives alone pays considerably more than someone who lives in a house of 4.
People are increasingly having to resort to renting, Tenants often do have any indication or control in the value of their property they are renting and so subjected to unpredictable changes to the amount of council tax when moving property.
A persons living circumstances, which many people have limited control over, should not determine how much they should pay. Council tax should be charged using the same system as income tax: Per person and based on income.