Analysis indicates that nearly all councils across the UK are poised to raise council tax to the highest permissible threshold without a referendum, underscoring a crisis in local authority financing. Of the 136 top-tier councils surveyed, merely eight have abstained from proposing an escalation of no less than 4.99 percent come April. The County Councils Network (CCN) discerned that 95 percent of councils intend to execute the maximum augmentation, marking a substantial upsurge from the 75 percent recorded in the preceding year.

Several councils grappling with financial crisis, including Birmingham, Woking, Slough, and Thurrock, have secured government authorisation to boost council tax by up to 10 percent, with Thurrock opting for a 7.99 percent surge.