Woking given the tax shaft again.

Robin Hood Collection Agency

The changes in the level of charge from last year as follows:-

Woking 0%

Surrey County Council 4.8%

Surrey Police Authority 9.7%

This gives an overall increase of 4.7%

Rejoice, rejoice the Tories tell us in Woking and for a nanosecond I did. It looked like for once, Blue Labour had gone back to the old school and actually stopped wacking us with tax rises. Now it is a bit much to spin this as a cut in real terms, as some naughty Tories are saying, as if you didn't get a pay rise (as many won't have) then there is no cut at all.

But then you get the rest of the facts.

Surrey County Council 4.8% Well above inflation and above the majority of people's pay rises. Now correct me if I am wrong, but Surrey is hardly a no go zone for the Tories. In other words, they have talked it out between them and decided Surrey level will be bad cop this year, so that Woking level can lock in their gains from the last election. Cynical moi? You know I am right!

Then the real kick in the plums is deployed. Surrey Police 9.7%

That's right 9.7% In other words any benefit of Woking not hitting the working man, is fully wiped out.

Now lets break that down for a typical (band E) property in Surrey.

Surrey County Council
£1293.16

Surrey Police
£229.68

Woking Borough Council
£232.98

Total
£1755.82


So the police bill isn't as bad as it first looked, but the Woking council bit is a tiny benefit too. The big beast is Surrey County Council, which the Tories control and yet try to tell us how grateful we should be at Woking level.


The question I have to ask though, is exactly what benefit do we get for all this money. Obviously some people pay more and some people pay less, but as an average lets work it out.

Now I know that Surrey pay a chunk of this over to SEERA. An EU creation, that tells our council what to do, with regards to housebuilding etc.

They are also in charge of roads too. Now I know, I know, they get a load of tax via Road tax and fuel tax, but we just have to accept they will be used to fund something else right?

So what exactly does Surrey do for me for over a grand a year? Letters on a post card please.

Woking council gets 232 for collecting my rubbish once a fortnight. Not great value, but tangible at least.

Then we have the police. 229.68. Now I wouldn't be to upset at that amount for a year, if I actually saw the police in my area once in a while. You know, on the beat. The only time I see them, seems to be when they are hiding in bushes, pointing a camera at motorists. The money they get from that should really be taken into account too.

In fact I think back through my life the police have been useful to me personally on one occasion. When I say useful, they turned up after my family had our house burgled and told us how the bloke who did it was known. It made us feel warm that they new him.

So for nearly 2k BEFORE we even take into account all the other taxation I have to pay, I am struggling to see the real value.

Go on people tell me what I am missing. What exactly can the government spend my money on better, than I couldn't have done myself?