Port Erin Ratepayers will have now received their Rates Demands for 2015-16 and I have been contacted by a number of people to ask for more information on why there has been such a sharp increase in the amount being charged on the current bill, despite the fact that Port Erin Commissioners maintained the rates at the previous years level of 288p in the pound.
As you will note from your Rate Demand, the total amount payable is made up by a number of charges. All of the charges other than the Local Authority rate has seen an increase for this current financial year, which I have highlighted below.
Local Authority Rate - this has remained at 288p Church Yard - this has increased from 8.5p to 10.5p Water Rate - this has increased from 307.22p to 313.97p Sewerage Charge - this has moved from a fixed amount of £50 to a rate of 61.29p
Therefore, the total rates levied this year within Port Erin is 673.36p in the pound, of which only 42.7% is received by Port Erin Commissioners. For comparison, a dwelling with a rateable value of £100 last year would have paid £653.72 which has increased to £673.36 this year - both figures shown are before discount for prompt payment.
However, for a larger property with a rateable value of £200, this would see an increase from £1,257.44 to £1,347.52 - again, both figures shown are before discount for prompt payment. This larger increase is largely down to the changes to the Sewerage Charge element which has increased from £50 to £122.58.
The Board of Port Erin Commissioners continues to strive to offer the best value for money services for the ratepayers of Port Erin which has been demonstrated in being able to retain the current rate of 288p for the forthcoming year, whilst still pursuing a number of projects such as the replacement footbridge at Spaldrick and also taking responsibility for additional services from Government.
I'd also like to remind residents that they can pay their Rate Demands at the Commissioners' Office via cash, cheque or card. This service is available to anyone Island wide who receives their Rates Demand from Treasury.
Steve George Chairman 16th April 2015
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