RESIDENTS in Fermanagh are outraged at the recent 1.37 per cent hike in rates and now a petition to stop the rates hike in the Council area is gaining momentum online.
At the time of writing, 372 people had signed the online petition to “help get reversed” the decision taken by Councillors last week to raise rates by 1.37 per cent.
Much debate has surrounded the annual striking of the rates in this most unusual of years which will be forever remembered for lockdowns, restrictions, closures furlough and job losses, not to mention grief and illness.
The meeting to strike the rate took place last Thursday evening and is still available to view by the public on the Council’s YouTube channel.
The setting of the rate will raise approximately £36.6 million in revenue for the Council and will cost each ratepayer with an average rateable value property an extra 11p per week or £1.04 a week for non-domestic property owners.
While it has been previously argued that this small weekly increase is a small price to pay for the major investment undertaken by the Council the accumulative year-on-year increase over say, a ten-year period, means rates have grown faster than the rate of inflation.
Meanwhile, Fermanagh Herald readers have taken to posting their frustration online when they responded to the rates hike in their droves on our social media platform.
One Facebook user blasted: “They should be cancelled this year like they were for businesses, people have got no value from any facilities.”
To read more on this story see this week’s Fermanagh Herald. Can’t get to the shop to collect your copy? No problem! You can download a copy straight to your device by following this link https://bit.ly/3gOl8G0
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