The Morecambe MP will lead a Parliamentary debate today (Tuesday April 18) about a huge Council Tax rise for town residents.
David Morris has secured the debate into parish and town Council Tax precepts, which will take place in Westminster Hall from 4pm.
Mr Morris said the debate has come about following Morecambe Town Council's decision to raise its Council Tax precept by 231 per cent in 2023/24.
The town council will raise £1m from the tax hike hoping to kickstart a community project on the derelict former Frontierland theme park in Morecambe.
Mr Morris said he'd been inundated with messages from angry residents since the decision was made and called it "a ludicrous idea".
Morecambe Town Council has said that money from taxpayers would create a £1m 'Community Action Fund' to bid for a "sustainable community project" on the Frontierland site with "indoor and outdoor spaces and leisure facilities".
The former Wild West theme park has been closed since 2000 and the land on Marine Road West has been derelict and unused for years.
The site (pictured below) is owned by Lancaster City Council, who are in the process of seeking "expressions of interest" from would-be developers.
Morecambe Town Council has put in its own expression of interest and is setting up a 'community forum' of residents to push the project forward.
But opponents of the tax rise say it's "double taxation" as taxpayers already paid for the land when the city council bought it in 2021, and they have said it is not for sale.
Despite the highest rise in its 14-year history, in 2023/24, Morecambe Town Council's share still only equates to six per cent of a total Council Tax bill for town residents - with money also going to other local authorities.
There is more background to this story here.
Morecambe MP calls for government investigation into £1m 'Frontierland tax' - Beyond Radio
COUNCIL TAX
A precept is a share of council tax.
Morecambe Council Tax payers also pay to Lancashire County Council, Lancaster City Council, the Police and Crime Commissioner and the Lancashire Fire Authority.
By law, these authorities must hold a referendum if they wish to raise their Council Tax precept above a specified level.
There are no such restrictions on town and parish councils.
A recent government report on 'Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England' said that parish council precepts in 2023-24 in England will total £708m which is £53m higher than in 2022-23.
Morecambe Town Council will collect £431,853.66 from its precept in 2023/24, plus the additional £1m.
In 2022/23 it collected a total of £425,250.
Prior to 2022/23, the town council's annual precept had never gone above £300,000 in the history of the council. Between 2013/2014 and 2020/2021, it had not risen above £200,000 per year.
There are 17,475 dwellings in Morecambe, of which 14,341 are chargeable for Council Tax after taking account of exemptions.
In Morecambe, the vast majority of properties fall into categories Band A, Band B and Band C.
Here is an example of a Morecambe resident's Band C Council Tax bill for 2023/24.
As an example, this year a Band C Morecambe Council Taxpayer will pay a total of £2,047.88.
This is divided up into £1213.03 to Lancashire County Council plus £186.71 for Adult Social Care, £223.51 to the Lancashire Police and Crime Commissioner, £221.50 to Lancaster City Council, £130 to Morecambe Town Council and £73.13 to the Lancashire Fire Authority.
A town council spokesperson said in March: "MTC has made every effort over the last 14 years to keep any increases to its portion of the council tax as low as possible. In some years MTC has received just 1% of the overall council tax collected from residents, making it very difficult to deliver projects that present meaningful improvements to the wellbeing and resilience of our Morecambe community.
"Any increments received by MTC, when averaged across the 14 years, total a monthly payment of £0.23 for Band D properties (£0.15pm for Band A, and £0.18 for Band B). Whilst this has created an overall saving - which has been passed on to residents - it has resulted in the council not building reserves adequate enough to meet the future needs and aspirations of the community.
"For 2023/24, MTC has allocated a year-on-year increment to create a Community Action Fund. This capital reserve will ensure the council is in the best position possible to put forward a feasible and meaningful bid to develop a sustainable community project on the Frontierland site that will play a substantial role within Morecambe as it evolves over time, empowering residents to participate in community activities, whilst providing attractions that will drive tourism."
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