AS local authorities grapple with how to fill gaping holes in their budgets, Council Tax bills for 2023/23 are being issued this month. So, how much will you be paying from what is set to be a challenging April?

It is a local tax?

Payable to the council in your area, the money collected from this tax goes toward paying for services in your locality, such as bin collections, recycling and general maintenance.

The rules remain the same?

The amount you pay depends on the size and value of your property on April 1991, with homes given a valuation band between the lowest, band A – up to £27,000 – to the highest, H – over £212,000. Newer properties’ bands are based on an estimate of their value had they existed in April 1991.

What is happening now?

Bills are increasing in line with the cost of services provided.

So far, decisions made by individual councils see council tax rising by at least 5 per cent, with some areas seeing increases of more than 10%.

Break it down?

Decisions from councils so far see a rise of 3.9% in Perth and Kinross, 4% in Aberdeenshire, 4.5% in Shetland, 4.75% in Dundee and 5% in Aberdeen, Argyll & Bute, Edinburgh, East Ayrshire, East Dunbartonshire, Fife, Glasgow, Midlothian, Moray, Na h-Eileanan Siar, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, the Scottish Borders, South Ayrshire and West Dunbartonshire. 

Elsewhere?

South Lanarkshire is rising by 5.5%, West Lothian by 5.8% and Dumfries & Galloway is rising by 6%, as is East Renfrewshire. East Lothian is up by 7%, as is Falkirk, while a 10% hike is due in the Orkney Islands.

How much more will come out of our wallets?

In Glasgow, for example, the average band D property – over £45,000 and up to £58,000 – pays £1428 at present, excluding water and sewerage charges, and this will rise to £1,499, although this will be more when waste and sewerage charges are factored in. The average band D in Edinburgh is, to the exclusion of the additional charges, £1,378.75 at present, rising to £1,447.69, although again it will be more when the extras are added.

But it comes against a backdrop of cuts?

Cosla, the umbrella body that represents Scotland's 32 councils, has previously warned services are at "breaking point" with some facing being scrapped. Deputy First Minister John Swinney announced back in December that local government would receive a funding rise of £550 million, but Cosla said that once Scottish-government mandated policies were covered, the rise would be just £71 million. Katie Hagmann, Cosla’s resources spokeswoman, warned: “Council services will now be at absolute breaking point and some may have to stop altogether.”

As well as Council Tax…?

Energy bills are on the up again. The energy regulator, Ofgem, has said its cap on the amount suppliers can charge for energy for average dual fuel, direct debit customers will fall by 23% for the three months from 1 April to £3,280, from £4,279 for the January to March quarter.

Consumers will not actually pay this as the government’s energy price guarantee and its £400 discount scheme subsidise household bills, keeping the price for a typical household at £2,100 a year. However, from April the price guarantee will become less generous and the discount will be withdrawn, meaning the typical annual bill will rise to £3,000.