Report from the Independent R&B Discussion Group – 30 June 2025

The Independent Revenues & Benefits Discussion Group, chaired by Malcolm Gardner, convened on 30 June 2025 for a wide-ranging discussion on Council Tax reform, debt collection, and welfare policy. The tone was consistent: the group welcomed debate but expressed frustration with what many saw as missed opportunities and superficial change.

Council Tax Reform – A Missed Opportunity

Gareth Morgan highlighted the more progressive approach taken in Wales, pointing to new rules around fairness, collection pilots, and partnerships with credit unions. He urged that England look to devolved models for lessons in policy and practice. Malcolm Gardner supported the idea and proposed a future session on this theme.

Tom Clark reflected on statutory enforcement rules, observing that while these look harsh on paper, most councils show discretion. He criticised the current reforms as reactive and underwhelming, suggesting they were more about placating media commentators, such as Martin Lewis than meaningful change. He also expressed disappointment at the lack of innovation in data sharing.

Bob Wagstaff agreed, calling the current system “completely outdated” and arguing for a shift from taxing occupation to taxing ownership. Such a change, he argued, could simplify administration, eliminate unnecessary discounts, and improve fairness.

Paul Howarth explained the legal barriers that inhibit better use of data across local authorities and departments. He described the current reliance on outdated gateways as a major constraint and called for targeted legislative change to support modern administration.

Kirsty Brooksmith raised questions around sharing data for social tariffs, especially when third parties such as software providers are involved. Paul confirmed this was permitted under the Digital Economy Act, provided contracts are in place and standards are met.

Naomi Armstrong drew attention to the limited time available to rationalise policies and systems ahead of the next wave of local government reorganisation. She warned of the scale of operational work needed to deliver consistent Council Tax reduction schemes across newly merged authorities.

Rachel Walker reported from recent conversations with senior officers that Revs and Bens functions were being sidelined in favour of adult social care and broader transformation agendas. She called for stronger leadership to ensure income collection and vulnerability support are not neglected.

Claire Pearce-Crawford expressed concern about using credit unions in debt recovery, citing cases where vulnerable individuals lost access to child benefit payments. Bob and Naomi acknowledged that, in many English authorities, partnerships with credit unions remain limited and inconsistent.

Welfare Reform – Policy or Politics?

Turning to recent changes in welfare policy, Rachel Walker was highly critical. She described the latest announcements as a “90° change of direction” rather than a full U-turn, and argued they would harm new claimants while doing nothing to address structural issues.

Paul Howarth echoed this, noting that any policy with real impact would require political will and financial investment – both in short supply. Elizabeth Whitehead-Davies described the changes as “written on the back of a fag packet”, driven by Treasury constraints rather than social need.

Bob Wagstaff pointed to the longer-term crisis in mental health and suggested that focusing on short-term cuts, rather than underlying causes, would only worsen outcomes and increase costs. Malcolm Gardner raised concerns that disability and work had been inappropriately conflated since the early days of Universal Credit.

The group agreed that despite years of reform, the system still fails to properly distinguish between health, disability, and employment barriers.

Closing Reflections

Malcolm Gardner asked if any aspect of the welfare reforms could be seen as positive. Gareth Morgan said the only silver lining was the government’s decision to pull back from some of its harsher proposals. Rachel Walker added that the emergence of vocal backbench opposition was a welcome sign of parliamentary scrutiny.

The session closed with a warning: back-office systems and suppliers are unlikely to cope with the raft of upcoming changes without significant cost and disruption. Participants expressed concern that fundamental issues in both Council Tax and welfare remain unresolved, and that politics continues to trump policy.

Future sessions will explore lessons from Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland in more depth.

The Independent Revenues & Benefits Discussion Group continues to provide a vital forum for expert analysis, shared learning, and open debate at a time of significant policy flux.

For more information or to join future sessions, contact Malcolm Gardner at Visionary Network. info@visionarynetwork.co.uk

The recording can be found here

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