HASLEMERE households face heftier council tax bills this year if proposals to go for the maximum allowed by Surrey and Waverley borough councils and Surrey Police Crime Commissioner (PCC) are approved.

The final decisions will be taken next month on a 5.99 per cent rise by the county council – which will add nearly £80 to a band D bill alone – a 2.99 per cent increase by the borough, and a 5.3 per cent rise for the policing element.

Last Thursday, Haslemere Town Council agreed a 16.9 per cent increase in its precept to help pay for taking over the public toilets, following Waverley’s decision last year to close them in order to save money.

Justifying the forthcoming hikes, Surrey leader David Hodge said the county had “no option”, with a budget shortfall of £39million in 2018/19 and £86million the following year.

He called on government to reconsider the decision to end its transitional grant, which was worth £24million to, “allow us to reconsider some of the very difficult service reductions we have to make”.

Hitting back, Heather Watson, the Lib Dem leader at Kingston, said: “This budget contains drastic cuts to services such as libraries, road maintenance, services for children and families as well as cuts to support for people with learning disabilities.

“They come on top of the unpopular cuts which have already been made to services including highways, community recycling centres and support to vulnerable people.

“It is a failure by central government to provide adequate funding to the county council and a failure of the Conservative-administration to get to grips with the financial problems at County Hall.”

Waverley Borough Council said it faced a £3.2million shortfall going forwards and Surrey Police plan to make £5.3million of savings.

Hampshire Constabulary announced it was axing 160 civilian and police posts to save £24million over the next four years.

Proposing the rise, which Waverley’s executive will consider on Tuesday, February 6, officers said: “It is recommended, given the significant projected budget shortfall in 2018/19 and subsequent years, Waverley’s council tax is increased by the maximum allowed in 2018/19.

“This would generate an additional £280,000 income.”

Haslemere town councillors objected they were being forced to carry the can for damaging service cuts made by Surrey and Waverley in order to meet their budget shortfalls.

The town council has budgeted £22,000 for taking over the town’s only public toilets from Waverley, to cover running costs, necessary maintenance work and associated rates.

It also paid £7,500 to secure the future of a dementia support centre, after Alzheimer’s Society decided to shut it last year. Supporters banded together to save the service, which has reopened as The Hunter Centre.

More recently, the council increased its contribution to the Citizens’ Advice Bureau to £11,520, in line with a new funding formula.

Proposing a 16.99 per cent increase in Haslemere’s precept at last Thursday’s full council meeting, which is equivalent to a £5.84 rise per annum, finance chairman Libby Piper said: “Surrey County Council and Waverley are not able to increase their precepts, so they are coming down hard on town and parish councils.

“We are looking to have a significant increase in precept in order to support The Hunter Centre, manage the toilets and refurbish them.

“When we talked about taking over the toilets, Waverley said we would not be rated for them.

“But now we have taken over a second building, the town council does have to pay rates on the town hall and toilets.

“That was an unnexpected uplift in costs. If we did without The Hunter Centre and toilets it would halve the rise but we were told residents were very supportive of both.

“If we want the town to look good and be welcoming, we have to take these things on.”