A 44 PER CENT council tax increase has been approved by Salisbury City Council's Finance and Governance Committee.

The committee voted on the budget proposals at a meeting on Monday night. 

The required precept for 2023/24 has been calculated as £5,152,561.30. Based on a tax base of 15380.78 this equates to a precept per band D property of £335.

This is an increase in the precept of £102 or 43.8 per cent per Band D property.

The council also plans to cut grants to cultural organisations by 50 per cent.

Salisbury City Council's Conservative group - the opposition group - said the 44 per cent rise "unacceptable".

It added: "The Labour/Liberal Democrat/Independent administration are proposing a 44 per cent rise in the precept in the next year and a 73 per cent rise over three years. Alongside this, they are proposing only increasing the income target by 4.7 per cent. 

"The Conservative group, having seen these absurd proposals, have prepared a draft alternative budget limiting the precept rise to 8.6 per cent."

The group said it was "very disappointed to discover that the Council administration was unwilling to discuss this alternative budget at the Council's Finance and Governance committee meeting on Monday". 

Among the group's suggestions include retaining the Venture Security contract, maintaining the council’s contract with East Hampshire Litter Enforcement, and delivering the promised cultural grant funding to arts and heritage institutions.

Savings are made by cutting the council's £250k cleaning budget, limiting the council’s staff salary increase of 46 per cent and increasing council fees in line with inflation.

Labour Cllr Ian Tomes, one of the three leaders of the council, said on Monday night that the administration repeatedly asked the Conservative group to engage with them before the budget was finalised, and they did not get a response before the committee meeting.

Cllr Tomes also accused the Conservative group of being "opportunist" and only offering alternatives at the very end of the entire process. 

Cllr Alan Bayliss, the lib Dem chairman of the committee, likened the amendments from the Conservatives to "closing the stable door after the horse has bolted". 

The committee was recommended to approve the report, which it did. 

Cllrs Bayliss, Tomes, Wells, Rogers, Charleston voted in favour, and cllrs Rimmer, Nettle, Hoque, and Wills voted against.

The budget will now go to Full Council on January 16.