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Conservative outrage over the prospect of Wandsworth increasing its Council Tax by 94 per cent could be considered deeply principled. Kemi Badenoch has informed the nation that party colleagues running the south London borough don’t want to hike residents’ bills by a vast amount next year, but might have to because the government has cut its funding to serve Labour Party interests. “What it looks like Labour is doing is taking money from areas that don’t vote Labour and giving it to places that do vote Labour,” she said, confirming that legal action may ensue.
Describing Wandsworth as a place that doesn’t vote Labour is a bit of a stretch, given that all three of its local MPs are Labour and so was its council until May. Even now, despite their comeback there, the Tories don’t have a council majority. And from a historical perspective, Badenoch’s indignation can look hypocritical.
Until Labour captured it in 2022, Wandsworth had, for decades, been Conservative controlled and famous for its strikingly low Council Tax. What made that possible? Tories will tell you it reflected the efficiency with which the local party ran its financial affairs. Others see things differently.
