Statement on the Council Tax

Mr. Heseltine spoke before the British House of Commons to announce the British government’s intention to replace the unpopular “poll tax” with a new “council tax.” Margaret Thatcher, the previous prime minister of Great Britain, instituted the “poll tax,” also known as the “community charge,” in 1990, which was a charge for public services that was instituted on every member of the nation regardless of their ability to pay. $5.1 billion in taxes went uncollected last year after furious British citizens protested the “poll tax” by not paying. The unpopularity of the “poll tax” is widely regarded as being the main reason for Margaret Thatcher’s decline in public favor and eventually her resignation. Last month, the British government lowered all British citizens' taxes by $238 and raised the sales tax to 17.8 percent. Mr. Heseltine announced the new “council tax” would be a property tax. close