W HOWARD is entitled to feel pleased for the people of Chester as they are entitled to perhaps feel envy of him - because the council tax in York is considerably lower than the figure in Chester (Letters, February 5).
York's band D figure is £790 but in Chester the lowest band D figure is £974.
With a five per cent rise as Mr Howard suggests, the lowest Chester figure will be more than £1,000.
Mr Howard claims it is £135, but he is perhaps forgetting to add together the figures for Chester City Council and Cheshire County Council.
Chester City Council is still a district authority with the county council running schools and social services (the biggest calls on budgets and staff deployment) in the city.
As a unitary, all-purpose authority City of York Council provides all local government services for the people of York. Nobody in York pays a council tax bill to North Yorkshire County Council.
I hope this explanation will prove illuminating - and help prevent an exodus of Yorkies to Chester.
Simon Wiles,
Acting director of resources,
City of York Council,
St Leonard's Place,
York.
Updated: 10:54 Friday, February 08, 2002
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