14 January 2005
Council tax collection in Scotland is still lagging behind that in England, with more than £600m uncollected, according to figures published this week.
In a report on January 13, the Accounts Commission said the collection level had increased for the fifth consecutive year, with councils netting 91.7% of the tax due in 2003/04. This is a marginal improvement on the previous year (91.4%) but compares poorly with the higher collection rate of 96.5% south of the border.
Commission chair Alastair MacNish said: 'Over the past 12 months, councils have improved in a number of key areas in line with the government's efficiency agenda. The reduction in time taken for councils to process benefit claims and pay invoices, along with the increase in council tax collection levels for the fifth consecutive year, is encouraging.'
The commission points out in its report that the gap in collection levels between Scotland and England has narrowed considerably. When the tax performance indicator was first introduced in 1996/97, Scottish councils collected 86.8% of tax due in the year, while the figure in England was 95.5%, a difference of 8.7 percentage points. The gap has now narrowed to 4.8.
The report shows that collection levels in 28 of the 32 councils increased, with the figures varying from 85.1% in Glasgow to 97.8% in the Orkney Islands.
But a number of councils have made little change in their collection levels. According to the commission, the variation between councils can be partly explained by factors that are outside the council's control, such as social deprivation and population density.
However, other factors, such as the accuracy of records, can by controlled by the council.
PFjan2005
