The TaxPayers' Alliance will be campaigning on Parliament Street between 12pm and 5pm on Thursday 11th February 2016. The eye-catching stall will be manned by TaxPayers' Alliance staff and local activists, handing out leaflets and asking local residents to join the TaxPayers' Alliance 80,000-strong activist base. Please see the notes to editors below for full details of the photo-friendly campaign stop.
Councils across the country are planning to increase taxes, claiming that the money is needed to fund essential services in the face of spending cuts.
York Council has increased Council Tax 17 times in the last 19 years, resulting in a whopping 72% rise in real terms. But not all of the money is being spent on essential services:
- Six-figure salaries paid to Town Hall bosses, with 5 earning over £100,000 and 2 over £150,000
- £288,061 worth of compensation claims paid out over 2 years, including £20,233 for "footway" related claims
- Council owns artwork worth £6.2m and properties including farms, pubs and a golf course
Ahead of the visit, Jonathan Isaby, Chief Executive of the TaxPayers' Alliance, said:
"Far too much taxpayers' money is wasted, keeping taxes high and taking precious resources away from essential services.
"It would be nothing short of immoral to saddle the next generation with our trillion-pound debt mountain. We need to strip out wasteful and unnecessary spending and start living within our means again.
"For too long taxpayers' money has been spent with impunity, with little accountability and not enough transparency. TPA will be coming to York to remind those we trust with our money that we're watching how it is spent very carefully indeed."
TPA spokesmen are available for live and pre-recorded broadcast interviews in York via 07795 084 113 (no texts).
High-quality photos will be available after the event.