If Angela Rayner removes the single occupancy discount on council tax, 250,000 households dealing with dementia and other forms of severe mental impairment (SMI) may be hit with a minimum of a 33% increase in council tax. More than 90% of people with dementia are over 65. God help pensioners!
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner has said that the government has no plans to increase English council taxes, but she has been more reticent when asked whether she would scrap the single person discount to the bill.
Council tax is based on two people living in a household (dwelling). If there is only one person living in the household they are entitled to a 25% discount, known as the single occupancy discount. This discount is also applied to other groups of people, who are ‘disregarded’ for council tax purposes.
Persons with severe mental impairment can qualify for discount
If a person (according to a qualified medical practitioner, such as their GP) is classed as SMI and is in receipt of a qualifying benefit they are entitled to be ‘disregarded for the purpose of council tax’.
“For the purposes of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, a person is severely mentally impaired if he/she has severe impairment of intelligence and social functioning (however caused) which appears to be permanent.”
According to this act, if someone has dementia and is in receipt of attendance allowance they can apply to be ‘disregarded’ when the council evaluates for council tax. This means that, if the disregarded person lives with one other person, the household in entitled to council tax single occupancy discount of 25%. If the disregarded person lives alone in the house they are entitled to council tax exemption; in other words, they pay no council tax.
SMI discount is identical to single occupancy discount
People with SMI are ‘disregarded’ for council tax purposes. So if they are living with one other person the household is subject to the same single occupancy discount on council tax as any other single household.
If the single occupancy discount on council tax is scrapped, it will very likely apply equally to people whose household includes someone with SMI. This means that scrapping the discount could create a situation where people dealing with dementia in their own home will face an increase in council tax of 33% – to the full 100% payment.
Extent of the problem
According to an Alzheimer’s Society report more than 90% of people with dementia are over 65 years old. The report states: “There are around 900,000 people in the UK living with dementia, and the likelihood of developing dementia increases significantly with age. When a person develops dementia before the age of 65, this is known as ‘young-onset dementia’. Over 70,800 people in the UK are living with young-onset dementia.”
According to a Freedom of Information request that I submitted, as at 1 January 2023 there were a total of 201,601 people with SMI receiving discounts and exemptions in England, 12,641 in Wales, 36,101 in Scotland and 191 in Northern Ireland (total 250,534) (100% councils responding).
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