Let councils charge higher taxes to pay for austerity, says LGA chair

James Jamieson urges ministers to inject billions into adult social care

Local authorities should be given the freedom to impose higher council taxes to help cope with the unprecedented funding crisis facing social care services after a near decade of austerity, the Tory chair of the Local Government Association has said.

James Jamieson urged ministers to inject billions of pounds into adult social care and give councils more control of local health services to protect elderly and disabled people and give them the support they needed. "It is a measure of a good society how well it treats it most vulnerable," said the councillor.