AN INCREASE in council tax in the Vale of Glamorgan is set to be proposed to councillors later this month.

The proposed council tax rate comes as the Vale of Glamorgan Council seeks to mitigate the impact of recent cuts in funding from Welsh Government on services in the county.

The council’s cabinet will next week (Monday, February 18) consider a report recommending an increase of 4.9 per cent from the current rate of council tax. This would set level for a Band D property at £1,245.06 a year for 2019/20.

Vale council leader Cllr John Thomas said: “The Vale of Glamorgan Council has made savings of £55m since 2010 - more than the entire budget for adult social care this year.

“Despite this we face a greater financial challenge than ever in 2019/20.

“Demand for our services, such as education and social care, continues to rise, along with the cost of delivering them, and we must now meet a significantly increased cost in the forms of increased employer’s contributions to the Teachers Pensions Fund.

“This increase, resulting from a review of the teachers’ pension scheme, will cost the council £3.1m over the next two years.

“We are not, however, simply passing these costs on to residents.

“We have had real successes in recent years in reducing the cost of delivering services and alongside the increase in council tax we have set ourselves a tough savings target of more than £3.7m for the next twelve months.”

If approved by the council’s cabinet the budget proposals will then be presented to a meeting of full council on Wednesday, February 27.

If agreed, this would set the council’s budget for 2019/20 at £226m.

Some £87m would be earmarked for schools and £48m for adult social care, among other vital services.

A separate report also being considered at the same meeting proposes that the 50 per cent reduction in council tax for vacant properties and second homes be removed.

The move could generate income for the authority while bringing empty homes back into use.