Council tax in Kirklees will go up by maximum amount permitted on April 1

It follows the approval of the Labour-led authority’s “budget for recovery” at a meeting on Wednesday evening (February 16).

The 2.99 per cent rise equates to a weekly increase of 63p for people living in a band A home and 94p for a band D home.

Almost a third of the increase – one per cent – is the Government’s adult social care precept. In Kirklees that costs £108m – nearly a third of the council’s overall budget.

Other monies will fund key issues such as fixing potholes, tackling fly-tipping and speeding up work on regeneration projects such as the Huddersfield Blueprint.

Outlining the Labour proposals Coun Paul Davies (Holme Valley South) said it was “about delivering funding for the things that really matter to residents as we bounce back from the pandemic”.

He said it was both urgent and long-term in its approach, and transformative for the district’s towns and villages.

On the continued pressure around adult social care he said: “Don’t let anyone tell you that social care is ‘fixed’. It’s not. And council taxpayers will continue to pay the price as funding fails to match demand.”

He accepted putting up council tax would add extra pressures to households struggling with cost of living increases.

But he said “raiding” council reserves to reduce council tax was “not just wrong”, but “reckless”.

He argued that those reserves were needed to protect vital services, such as high needs in schools.

He said: “We’re running a billion-pound organisation, not a market stall.”

During a four-and-a-half-hour debate at Huddersfield Town Hall councillors aired frustrations and hurled recriminations across the floor.

A key argument was around the Conservative Government’s 10-year austerity programme.

Labour members repeatedly referenced cuts of £200m in Kirklees and said the borough was still struggling to recover.

That got short shrift from Conservatives who said Labour were “bleating” about the past while failing to invest in – and plan for – the future.

Deputy Group Leader Coun John Taylor (Kirkburton) referred to “a recovery from the wasted decade”.

He said: “We have an administration which did nothing while its neighbours invested in their boroughs – and now decides to spend huge sums just as interest rates start to rise.”

That was a reference to the £250m Huddersfield Blueprint, which will be largely funded by borrowing.

Conservatives lamented a “lack of transparency” around business cases for the Blueprint plans.

That was echoed by the Lib Dems’ Coun John Lawson (Cleckheaton), who questioned whether the Blueprint was viable.

He said: “I flagged some time ago about commitment bias and the need to review regularly – and how our group would be supportive if a change was needed.

“That offer is still there.”

Both Coun Lawson and Conservative Group Leader Coun David Hall (Liversedge and Gomersal) said opposition groups had been given insufficient time to draft comprehensive amendments to Labour’s proposals

The Greens’ Coun Andrew Cooper (Newsome) suggested the establishment of a fuel poverty fund to help improve the energy efficiency for people living in cold homes, to be funded initially through a charitable trust.

And the Holme Valley Independents via lead member Coun Charles Greaves (Holme Valley North) said there was no other way forward for Kirklees than to increase council tax if it wished to provide key services after being stripped of £200m during austerity.

Council voted by 32 to 29 to approve the Labour motion, which will now be adopted as the budget for 2022/23.

Amendments by the Conservatives, Lib Dems, Greens and Independents all fell.