CITY PARKING PLAN ON HOLD; Council tax 4.5% rise in Liverpool.

Byline: by DAVID BARTLETT City Editor

COUNCIL tax for most homes in Liverpool will increase by pounds 43 from April.

Liverpool Council has ratified its budget that sees its share of council tax rise by 4.45%.

Once Police Authority and Fire Authority precepts, of 5% and 3.85%, are included it will see overall bills rise by 4.47%.

It means a band A household will have an annual bill of pounds 1,007, up pounds 43 from April.

Plans to extend car parking charging until 8pm in Liverpool city centre will be put on hold.

The Liberal Democrat administration has agreed not to implement the change until an inquiry has concluded.

A plan to save pounds 200,000 by axing 25 lollipop men and women had already been scrapped.

The Labour administration tried to overturn the decision to extend parking until 8pm, to strip more than 2,000 teenagers of their free bus passes to save pounds 2.39 per child per week, and not introduce plans to charge for additional visitor passes to places with resident only parking.

It would be paid for by delaying pounds 318,000worth of investment in housing and neighbourhoods by a year, and stopping payments for assistant executive members saving pounds 82,000.

Eventually the Labour motion was defeated.

At the meeting it was announced Lord Mayor Steve Rotheram is on course to raise a record pounds 600,000 for charity.

Cllr Rotheram, is also likely to have attended somewhere around 2,000 events.

St Helens Council approved a rise of 2.5%, and Halton Council approved a 3.4% rise.