Council tax rise of 8.5% approved in Western Isles

Western Isles councillors have approved an 8.5% council tax rise after a debate that saw an amendment for a lower increase narrowly defeated.

The budget for 2026/27, agreed at a full council meeting on Tuesday evening, will mean Band D households in the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar area will pay an estimated £118 more per year – approximately £2.27 per week. The indicative figures do not include Council Tax Relief.

Officers had originally recommended a 9.5% rise, but Comhairle Leader Paul Steele asked the Policy and Resources Committee to reduce this to 8.5% earlier in the day, citing the cost of living pressures facing island households.

An amendment proposed by SNP councillor Frances Murray, seconded by Councillor Susan Thompson, called for a further reduction to 7.5%, with the difference made up from uncommitted reserves.

Councillor Murray told the meeting: “Put simply, in putting forward this amendment, I’m asking for a rebalancing of the relative amounts on the two sides of the scale of council tax revenue and the use of reserves.”

She added that while the increase “may only be the equivalent of £2.53 per week” at Band D under the original 9.5% proposal, “that’s equivalent to £131 a year, which is not an insubstantial amount when taken in conjunction with the likes of fuel prices and food inflation.”

Councillor Murray said: “The people that the pressure is on are the people just above that threshold of receiving council tax relief.”

Seconding the amendment, Councillor Thompson said: “Households are under real pressure. People understand the financial challenges facing the Comhairle, but they have also asked, fairly in my view, for a more equitable settlement. One that shares the burden rather than placing it too heavily on families already stretched.

“This is not simply about rejecting the albeit improved proposal before us. It is about improving it further. Listening, adjusting and ensuring our decisions reflect both fiscal responsibility and social justice.”

Supporting the Leader’s motion, Councillor Donald Crichton said: “We’re going to need every single penny of the reserves up until the end of this decade.”

He added: “Council tax came out in the public survey as being something that the public would favour in terms of helping us tackle the financial situation that we have. And it is the only mechanism open to us as a democratically elected authority to raise revenue, something that was denied to us over a decade with the iniquitous council tax freeze.”

Councillor Norrie MacDonald criticised the SNP group’s position, saying: “Every time we’ve had to deal with this ruinous settlement [from the Scottish Government], the only way we can attempt to balance the budget is by increasing the council tax. And guess who opposes the increase to the council tax every single year? Well, it’s the party who are in government in Holyrood.

“It’s almost like with one hand, we know where the money is coming from or not coming from. And, on the other hand, the party that’s given us less money is opposing this, putting our council tax up to mitigate the differences.”

Presenting the budget, Councillor Steele said: “None of us wishes to raise taxes, but neither do we wish to cut our services or leave the Comhairle exposed in future years.”

He warned that the Scottish Government’s spending review showed local government’s share of national funding would fall from 26.4% this year to 24.8% by 2028/29, and noted that the Accounts Commission had “publicly and starkly declared that some councils are likely to be financially unviable within the next three to five years.”

Councillor Steele told the meeting: “The term ‘cost of living crisis’ would be better now described as a permanent and increasing cost of living, and the question which the Comhairle continues to try its best to answer is, ‘What can we continue to do to support our communities?’”

He added: “We look first to protect our communities by protecting frontline services as much as possible.”

The budget uses £250,000 from uncommitted reserves, rising to an estimated £400,000 with the reduction from the original 9.5% proposal.

Councillor Steele said: “The purpose of reserves is not to retain money for its own sake, or vaguely to save for the proverbial rainy day, but to ensure that the Comhairle has the capacity to make some choices.”

In a significant amendment, councillors agreed to drop a proposed £50,000 saving to school counselling and children and young people’s mental health services, with funding instead coming from the newly created Service Pressures Fund.

However, an amendment to reinstate £109,145 in dedicated funding for six named arts organisations – including An Lanntair, Taigh Chearsabhagh, and Hebridean Celtic Festival – was defeated by 17 votes to 10. Instead, £110,000 from Crown Estate funds will be available through a competitive bidding process open to all creative organisations.