Friday November 6th 2026
Councillor Leigh Douglas
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Paul Kelly
Council Tax payers in the Scottish Borders could face a rise in their bills higher higher than the five per cent anticipated, it emerged at a meeting this week.
Scottish Borders Council discussed “budget assumptions” for 2027/28 when members met on Thursday.
A five per cent hike in the levy was pencilled in earlier this year but much depends on the size of the local authority’s annual financial settlement from Scottish Government, which is to be announced in December.
Last year’s settlement of £310.9m was less than the council had anticipated and concern remains over a repeat situation.
Councillor Douglas, SBC’s lead member for Finance, IT and Corporate Performance, said: “The indicative budget approved in February 2026 assumed that from 27/28 Council Tax would increase by five per cent and that assumption will be considered as part of the budget planning process.
“However, it is important to note, and I make no apology for repeating this, that the level of increase alone will not be sufficient to address the revenue gap the council faces based on estimated Scottish Government settlement amounts at the moment and the current service demand costs.
“Last week, as we know, the Labour budget announced extra funding for the Scottish Government. What matters now is how much that Government will pass on to councils in December and how it shares that money out.
“Just a reminder that around 80 per cent of the day to day funding comes from the Scottish Government, so those decisions will make a real difference.”
Councillor Douglas said the aim was to keep bills as low as possible while protecting services.
SBC imposed a 8.5 per cent Council Tax increase for the current financial year.
Members were told that the levy currently accounts for 20 per cent of the local authority’s budget.
SBC now has a Band D charge for Council Tax of £1,618.52 per annum in 2026/27.
Despite recent increases SBC’s rate remains the eighth lowest Council Tax charge in Scotland and the sixth lowest in mainland Scotland.
Each one per cent increase in Council Tax provides £845k to the council to support delivery of council services, so an increase of 10 per cent would generate an additional £8.45m.
The council has already assumed a five per cent increase which equates to £4m of additional Council Tax income already included within the provisional financial plan for 2027/28.
Borders have until Thursday, November 12 to have their say on the budget. You can take part in a survey at https://scotborders.citizenspace.com/finance/budget-survey-2026/.
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