HACKNEY households will pay between £10 and £30 extra on their council tax bills from April despite the town hall sticking by its pledge to freeze any increase in the council s element of the tax...

HACKNEY households will pay between £10 and £30 extra on their council tax bills from April despite the town hall sticking by its pledge to freeze any increase in the council's element of the tax.

The Labour-controlled council set a £276.535 million budget for 2007/8, agreeing a below-inflation rise of 1.2 per cent at its budget-fixing meeting last week.

The benchmark figure for the average band D property in the borough increases £15.27, from £1,287.06 to £1,302.33.

Hackney's element of the tax remains the same as last year at £998.45 for a band D property.

However, the Greater London Authority precept - the amount London mayor Ken Livingstone levies from local authorities to fund London-wide services such as the Metropolitan Police, Fire Brigade and public transport, as well as the 2012 Olympic Games - has increased by 5.3 per cent, up from £288.61 for a band D property to £303.88.

Hackney mayor Jules Pipe said sound financial housekeeping had enabled Hackney to freeze its element of council tax for the second consecutive year and balance the budget for the fifth year running without cutting services.

FOR THE FULL STORY AND FIGURES SEE THJIS WEEK'S GAZETTE AVAILABLE NOW.