COUNCIL tax in Pendle has increased by almost 50 per cent over the last 20 years, according to a new report.

Since 1997/98, council tax for Band D households in the borough has surged from £803.25 to £1,766.20 in 2017/18, a rise of 49.14 percent.

That is according to a new report by the Taxpayers’ Alliance, which shows that council tax in England has increased by 57 per cent in real terms since 1997.

Contrastingly, Hyndburn is one of seven councils to have a lower council tax today than they did in 1997, with Band D households paying 3.5 percent less now than they did 20 years ago.

John O’Connell, Chief Executive at the TaxPayers’ Alliance, said: “Councils should look to reduce spending before hitting taxpayers with yet another round of painful tax hikes.”

But Cllr Mohammed Iqbal, leader of Pendle Council said: “If you take out the town and parish council precepts, Pendle wouldn’t be the highest. But the fact is we’ve seen a reduction of 67 per cent in government grant funding, leaving us with no option but to put council tax up to sustain public services.”

Hyndburn’s MP Graham Jones said: “These are remarkable statistics, as we saw 13 years of a Tory-led Hyndburn council hike council taxes by over 50 per cent. This data shows how much better a Labour-led council has managed finances and budgets in the last six years.”