HAMPSHIRE is not alone in expecting a major hike in the council tax next April, it has emerged following a high level meeting in Winchester.
At the meeting, chaired by Hampshire County Council leader Ken Thornber, leaders of other counties in the south east predicted council tax rises of around 10 per cent.
Hampshire is expected to post increases of between eight and nine per cent when it sets it budget in February.
A major factor pushing up the tax, claim the council leaders, is persistent government underfunding of social services whose costs continue to escalate.
They were also critical of any proposals to transfer the counties' strategic planning functions to remote regional bodies.
"Passing these county-wide local issues to an unelected, remote and increasingly bureaucratic regional government will not strike much of a chord with the public," said Cllr Thornber.
"But this is only a green paper and there are many opportunities for county councils to state their case as the best strategic planning authority."
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