OIC approves six per cent council tax rise

Orcadians are going to have to shell out just under £8 a month extra on council tax.

The six per cent rise agreed on Tuesday will take the annual bill for a Band D dwelling to £1669.07.

Members of Orkney Islands Council’s (OIC) policy and resources committee also agreed to find savings totalling £247,000 and raise charges by 3.8 per cent.

They are to draw on up to £20 million from reserves to help balance a £153 million budget.

Officials do not expect any compulsory redundancies to result from any cuts in the authority’s 1,684-strong workforce.

The new Band D rate, a £1.82 per week hike, will rake in an extra £600,000.

The rise was approved on the nod at the meeting amid renewed complaints about OIC getting a raw deal in the latest settlement it received from the Scottish Government.

The committee’s decision will now go to a meeting of the full council next Tuesday, March 10.

For the full story, look out for this week’s edition of The Orcadian in shops and online on Wednesday.