Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Council Tax Revenue: Student Accommodation

Monday 14 July 2025 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Council Tax Revenue: Student Accommodation is discussed in Ministerial Questions.
  • Wera Hobhouse raises concerns about Bath council's significant reduction in revenue support grant and requests urgent attention through the fair funding review.
  • Kim Johnson asks about Liverpool's loss of 9 million in council tax revenue due to student exemptions and seeks clarification on addressing these anomalies.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Wera Hobhouse Lib Dem Bath
Local Government
Context

Bath Council received £31 million through the revenue support grant in 2013, but this year it is just around £1 million. Students who are exempt from council tax are not being counted.

Question

In 2013, my Bath council received £31 million through the revenue support grant. This year, it is just around £1 million. Students, who are exempt from council tax, are not being counted. Will the Minister ensure that, through the fair funding review, the issue is urgently addressed, and that councils such as Bath and North East Somerset are not missing out entirely on central Government support?

Answer from The Minister for Local Government and English Devolution (Jim McMahon)

The fair funding review will ensure that, for the first time ever, all component pressures that councils face in delivering public services are taken into account. It is wrong that while this Parliament can decide on national exemptions that councils have to apply, which limit their ability to raise council tax locally, we do not account for that in the distribution of funding that follows. For the first time, we will do that.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not provide a specific timeline or commitment on addressing Bath Council's issue urgently through the fair funding review.

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Q2 Kim Johnson Lab Liverpool Riverside
Education Local Government
Context

Liverpool city council is estimated to lose £9 million in council tax revenue each year due to student exemptions. There are 245,000 student exempt dwellings and 77,000 halls of residence nationally.

Question

Liverpool is a university city, and I have three universities in my constituency. Liverpool city council is estimated to lose £9 million in council tax revenue each year due to student exemptions. Will the Minister explain when and how those anomalies will be dealt with, so that the council does not lose that amount of funding every year?

Answer from The Minister for Local Government and English Devolution (Jim McMahon)

The fair funding review 2.0 is out to consultation, and we welcome contributions from Members, local authorities, and others. At heart, we want to fully account for the ability of an area to raise income locally. Nationally, there are 245,000 student exempt dwellings and 77,000 halls of residence. It is quite right that we take that into account when we assess how much council tax can be raised locally.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not provide a specific timeline or commitment on addressing the anomalies in Liverpool city council's funding.

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