Many older people are asset rich and cash poor. Do you really think it’s fair that people just on or unable to get on the property ladder subsidise their property taxes?
I’m absolutely not insinuating that people just starting out on the property ladder should subsidise much older asset rich folks in houses that have probably tripled or more in value since purchase. What I’m ultimately getting at, is that Council Tax full stop needs a total overhaul. I do find it slightly incredulous that everyone just seems to accept this tax getting ever more expensive and no one is really complaining about it, except of course the poor buggers who are in arrears with their CT and have the bailiffs banging on the door.
I guess though, life just isn’t fair. As the old saying goes, the rich just get richer and the poor just get poorer.
Look at where your Council Tax goes and then wonder how else to finance those areas.
I, for one, don’t use a library or schools, however, I don’t mind contributing towards their cost for those that do.
Others may have different opinion.
I haven’t used or called the emergency services in years, yet still pay a precept 
True. But I mean more of the attitude of spending and income. Look for sustainable sources of income to cover costs, and reduce unnecessary costs. Just don’t get the impression our council does this
It’s enough to look at what management companies do to see why a privately run council would be a terrible idea. Ours is luckily great but the neighbouring street haven’t had their grass cut at all this year, and they pay 2-3x my management fee.
Then there’s the local tip, outsourced to a private company to manage. You have to start queuing at 4am to get in within a reasonable timeframe, otherwise the road is blocked for over a mile, all day long
Private companies in a monopoly position tend to optimise the costs so much so that barely anything gets done and optimise their income to a point where shareholders can afford two trips to the Bahamas every year
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I don’t use libraries or schools either, indeed me and the missus never had kids and so to be honest, I thinks we should get some sort of tax relief for not having kids! Not having kids has kept our carbon footprint down for starters.
The last time I called the emergency services, was back in 2001 to a commercial wheelie bin fire. The fire brigade took so long to arrive that I managed to extinguish the blaze myself with a couple of portable fire extinguishers.
I know some Councils have merged their refuse services etc and a few fire and rescue services have now amalgamated with adjoining Counties. Perhaps it’s time for the Police service to do the same, start merging County Forces and get rid of a lot of the top chain of command. In my opinion, 43 Chief Constables in England and Wales alone, is quite frankly, extracting the urine.
I guess I’m fairly lucky where I live, our local recycling centre is quite close by and is well run by a private waste company.
As for where I live, well it’s a new development and every adult resident owner is a member of development management company. So I have to pay around £270 a year development management fees for the communal landscaping areas, so basically, the local Council who I have to also pay a precept for on my CT bill, does bugger all, except empty the bins.
Everyone benefits from the existence of schools, though. I want to be reassured that there will be a sufficient number of well educated adults in the workforce so that when I get my old age pension there will be enough tax payers to support me.
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Euphemistically titled “prudential borrowing” makes up the bulk of many councils’ funding now, after 50% cuts for many since 2010. I don’t think there are all that many “unnecessary” costs left
I want people meanwhile to start saving for their pensions so the taxpayer doesn’t
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Prudent taxpayers should, as well 
I take it you’ve never worked in local government…
Well that was the whole point of introducing workplace pensions wasn’t it? to ahh, encourage people to save for their retirement.
Many people do however opt out of the workplace pension scheme. At this point, I’d just like to point out, I’m 37 years fully paid up Ni contributions so I’ve nothing to feel guilty about. Plus, I have a fairly generous Government pension already being paid to me. My point however is, whenever I do choose to actually work, I always opt out of the workplace pension scheme because quite simply, I neither want nor need it. Unfortunately, I do know several people who opt out of the workplace pension schemes citing an affordability issue, irrespective of any tax breaks involved by being in one.
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I absolutely admire your optimism.
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Because the private sector are driven by altruism and the good of the people rather than the bottom line ? Let’s be honest, the private sector would redline or exclude huge swathers of people to turn a profit. Same with the health sector. You never hear elderly people with multiple medical issues advocating private healthcare.
It’s already been highlighted that I mistyped my phrase. Should have said “highly likely” 
Because people are more than able to save for their own retirement if they live life in a non-wasteful way
Um, no they can’t? No point arguing this, you just need to sometimes try to live in the real world
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If they can’t, society is flawed. You should only ever be paying for yourself and immediate family, not everyone else under the sun. Burdening the future generation with your retirement fund for old people to vote at our detriment is worthy of setting a maximum voting age
But I don’t agree with you, still. Working and being relatively frugal and only having kids after building your career, you’d be very middle class. Invest that into market trackers or even dividend paying funds, you’d have a decent salary at the end (and you’d own your house) that would cover your bills.
I, for example, have a university degree entirely self funded and my net worth is barely negative, give me 1 year after I finish my Bachelors (I currently have an English Foundation Degree) and I will be in for a positive net worth, even with a job that has me stacking shelves.
Pair that with a relatively modest salary that is attainable, I could probably hit a 25k salary off the bat and move on to somewhere around 50k in some years. I’d have to be very stupid to miss being able to retire with no state pension, I think.
Do you hate your neighbours that much?! 
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No, they’re lovely. Still doesn’t mean I want to pay for them