Referendums Relating to Council Tax Increases (Principles) (England) Report 2026-27
279Ayes
90Noes
Carried · majority 189 · Government won277 did not vote
646 Members · Aye 279 · No 90 · DNV 277 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
MPs approved the government's proposed referendum thresholds for council tax increases in England for 2026-27 on 11 February 2026. The motion passed by 279 votes to 90. These thresholds set the ceiling on how much a local council can raise council tax before being legally required to hold a local referendum. The vote determines the practical limits on council tax rises across English local authorities for the coming financial year. Councils that wish to raise bills beyond the approved thresholds must put the question to residents in a referendum, a requirement designed to act as a check on large increases. By approving the thresholds, Parliament allows the current framework to stand for 2026-27, affecting the bills paid by households across England. The division followed strict party lines. All 275 Labour and Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted backed the government's position, while 87 Conservatives and 3 Reform UK members voted against, with no crossover in either direction. The Liberal Democrats had no vote recorded. The Conservatives and Reform UK opposed the thresholds, arguing they permit councils to raise bills too steeply. A number of MPs across parties had no vote recorded, including 113 Labour members and 29 Conservatives.
Voting Aye meant
Support the government's proposed council tax referendum thresholds for 2026-27, allowing the current rules on limits for council tax rises to stand
Voting No meant
Oppose the proposed thresholds, likely arguing they are too generous to councils and will lead to excessive council tax increases for residents
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped Aye
248
0
113
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped No
0
87
29
Liberal Democrats
—
0
0
71
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped Aye
27
0
15
Independent
—
3
1
9
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
Whipped No
0
3
5
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
—
1
0
4
Green Party of England and Wales
—
0
0
4
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
0
2
Your Party
—
1
0
1
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
1
0
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
0
0
1
Ulster Unionist Party
—
0
0
1
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Defends the settlement as restoring fairness by reconnecting funding with deprivation after 14 years of Tory cuts; announces £740m additional grant funding and £2.6bn recovery grant for most deprived councils.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,666 words) →
Opposes the settlement as leaving two-thirds of councils worse off; criticises shift of funding from statutory services to poverty-based allocations and attacks removal of rural services delivery grant.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (3,187 words) →
Welcomes multi-year settlements and SEND deficit relief but cannot support the settlement; criticises removal of remoteness funding and excessive reliance on council tax to balance budgets.Liberal Democrat · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (1,939 words) →
As Chair of Housing Committee, welcomes fairer funding formula and SEND support but urges deeper reform of council tax and fundamental review of mandatory service demand on councils.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (1,863 words) →
Supports the 31% funding increase for Harrow but highlights ongoing council mismanagement, service failures in children's and adult social care, and continued need for scrutiny and oversight.Labour · Voted aye · Read full speech (2,371 words) →
Rejects settlement as failing rural authorities; argues removal of remoteness funding and rural services delivery grant amounts to pork-barrel politics favouring Labour urban councils.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (1,053 words) →
Questions why food waste recycling costs not met with traditional new burdens funding; highlights unequal treatment between Conservative and Labour council areas in Worcestershire.Conservative · Voted no · Read full speech (460 words) →
Criticises insufficient support for Shropshire despite inherited Tory mismanagement; notes council tax increases don't offset core funding cuts and rural costs are unaddressed.Liberal Democrat · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (133 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0