THE COMMISSION ON LOCAL TAX REFORM

Our final report, “Just Change: A New Approach to Local Taxation,” sets out the work that we have done, what the evidence has told us, and our conclusions.

In it, we argue that the current system of Council Tax must end, with any replacement designed to be fairer, more progressive and locally empowering. We also set out a range of different systems of local taxation, and consider the potential impact and administration of these.

The report does not advocate any single alternative to the present system, highlighting that “there is no one ideal local tax”.

Our work is intended to inform new policies on local taxation which will be put to the electorate in the Scottish Parliamentary election in May 2016, recognising that political parties will attach different weights to the considerations for different options.

Most importantly, we want our report to help people understand the implications of the choices they are offered.

You can also view a copy of our report in HTML format.

 

We have kept our report as short and accessible as possible.  We have therefore also published two companion volumes:

	Volume 2: Technical Annex This follows exactly the same format as ‘Just Change’ but includes detailed supporting analysis.  It includes the most comprehensive programme of quantitative analysis ever attempted to understand the relationships between property and land values and household incomes.
	Volume 3: Compendium of Evidence This contains the outcomes of all the work we have undertaken, including our wide ranging programme of public engagement to help understand what people think about the present Council Tax system and the potential alternatives to it.