Since Sadiq Khan has been Mayor of London council tax has risen by 71%.
This is only true of the Greater London Authority “precept”—the Mayor’s portion of council tax. Overall the average Band D council tax bill in London has risen by less since 2016/17.
A number of posts on Facebook have claimed that since Sadiq Khan became Mayor of London there has been a 71% increase in council tax in the city.
This figure is correct only when looking at the Greater London Authority (GLA) “precept”—the Mayor’s portion of council tax collected by the 32 London boroughs and the Corporation of London (the authority in charge of the City of London) that helps pay for the running of City Hall and the services it provides.
Some of the posts include a video of the Leader of the Commons, Penny Mordaunt MP, making a similar claim—but if you listen carefully Ms Mordaunt says “increasing the Mayor’s council tax 71%”, which is correct.
In 2016/17, the last financial year for which the budget was approved before Mr Khan became Mayor, the precept for a Band D property (a commonly used rate when comparing council tax in different areas) in the 32 London boroughs was £276, with the precept in the City of London set at £73.89.
The Mayor’s budget for 2024/25 is yet to receive final approval. However it is proposed that in the upcoming financial year the precept will increase to £471.40 in the 32 London boroughs, and to £166.27 in the City of London—increases of 71% and 125% respectively compared to when Mr Khan was elected Mayor in May 2016.
But the precept only accounts for part of the overall council tax paid on domestic properties in London. When looking at the full amount, the increase since Mr Khan became Mayor is lower.
Final budgets have not yet been confirmed for all boroughs, so we don’t yet know overall figures for 2024/25. But looking at the figures for the current financial year shows overall council tax in London has increased by less than the precept since 2016/17.
In 2016/17, the average Band D council tax bill in London, including the precept, was £1,306. As of 2023/24 it’s £1,789—a 37% increase.
Over this period Croydon has seen the largest overall council tax increase at 50%, with the borough having been given special dispensation in 2023/24 to increase council tax above the referendum threshold as a result of financial difficulties.
The maximum amount London borough councils may raise council tax by in 2024/25 without holding a referendum is 4.99%, with the majority expected to do so. Meanwhile the government set the GLA precept a threshold of a £37.26 (8.6%) increase for a Band D property without a referendum (and indeed, the Mayor’s budget proposes to increase the precept by this amount). Based on those councils which have announced their proposed rates, there’s no indication that the average Band D bill in London in 2024/25 will be 71% higher than it was in 2016/17.
Misleading claims about the record of politicians can affect how people choose to vote. We often see these types of claims spread widely online.
Image courtesy of Christian Vasile
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as missing context because this is only true of the Greater London Authority “precept”—the Mayor’s portion of council tax. Overall the average Band D council tax bill in London has risen by less since 2016/17.
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