Our petition, “Exempt all pensioners from council tax” (No. 736599), calls on Parliament to remedy this anomaly by passing legislation that relieves every pensioner in Britain of this burden. (Petitions – UK Government and Parliament)
Only those pensioners with the lowest incomes, below the Pensions Credit threshold, qualify for full council tax relief via schemes such as Council Tax Reduction or Support. (Age UK) For others, who may not be destitute but still have little flexibility in their budgets, there is possibly no relief, due to finding themselves over the means test threshold by just a few pence. Our pensioners, who have worked all their lives, still find themselves forced to pay hundreds or even thousands of pounds in council tax from a state pension that barely covers essentials.
This is not merely a matter of fairness or compassion. There is a principled, public-policy rationale:
• Fixed incomes, rising costs
Pensioners, by definition, typically rely on fixed or slowly rising income streams (state pension, private or workplace pensions). In contrast, their outgoings, particularly energy, services, property maintenance, council services, have escalated sharply in recent years. For many, council tax now represents one of the most inflexible and burdensome elements in their expenditure.
• The postcode lottery and unfairness
Council tax is based on property bands set on 1991 valuations, leading to huge disparities in tax burdens relative to current property values. In some areas, modest houses are taxed at relatively high effective rates, while in those with rapid price inflation the burden becomes less proportional. The system is increasingly regressive and unpredictable.
• Administrative simplicity and certainty
By removing pensioners entirely from council tax liability, we eliminate the complexity, variation and discretion currently embodied in local authority arrangements. We publicise once and for all a clear entitlement rather than a fragmented patchwork of local discounts, reductions and appeals.
• Political momentum
In recent weeks, more than a dozen Labour MPs have publicly urged the Chancellor to scrap council tax altogether, decrying it as “outdated, regressive and increasingly indefensible.” (The Guardian) While their aim may be broader, the logic extends to shielding those most vulnerable, pensioners, from its burden.
Critics may wonder: how would local services be funded? The answer lies in rethinking the funding base. If pensioner exemption were enacted, the shortfall could be made up by modest adjustments elsewhere, such as broadening the tax base, modestly raising bands on higher-value properties, or reallocating national grant funding. Given the moral and social imperative to protect pensioners, these adjustments would be justifiable.
This reform would command wide public support. Many younger voters see their parents or grandparents struggling under invisible burdens. Recognising and enshrining an exemption for pensioners would send a message: once you reach retirement age, you should not be forced to pay a tax that disproportionately strains fixed incomes and constrains dignity.
We invite all readers to support our petition Exempt all pensioners from council tax (736599) on the Parliament petitions site. Please sign if you agree and share widely. Beyond the signature count, we encourage local and national media to hold MPs and candidates accountable: ask them whether they support such an exemption?
Our ideal would be wholesale reform of the property taxation system. But as an urgent, focused measure.
Full pensioner exemption is humane, politically manageable and memorable. It is time to relieve older people of an unjust tax burden and restore fairness to our local taxation.
