Liverpool Council Votes to Freeze Council Tax, Cuts Parking Fees to Ease Cost-of-Living Crunch

Liverpool City Council voted 8-0 on Thursday to freeze its portion of council tax for the 2026/27 financial year and to cut on-street parking charges by 15 percent, part of a package designed to reduce household expenses by more than £4 million. The decision, taken at a full council meeting in Liverpool Town Hall, comes as inflation in the North West of England stood at 3.8 percent in June, according to the latest Office for National Statistics data.

Council leader Liam Robinson did not speak during the vote, but the policy document circulated before the meeting states the freeze applies only to the city council’s share of the bill, not to the combined amount that includes Merseyside Police and the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority precepts. The average Band D property in Liverpool currently pays £1,856.42 annually in total council tax, of which the city council’s element is £1,103.21. Freezing that portion means the average household will not see the projected £47 increase that had been considered in earlier budget drafts.

Parking fees and daily costs

Parking charges on all council-managed on-street bays in the city centre and suburban shopping streets-including Bold Street, Allerton Road, and Lark Lane-will drop to £1.70 per hour from the current £2.00. The new rate takes effect on August 3. Council officers estimate the reduction will save a commuter who parks for two hours, five days a week, approximately £156 over a year. The city’s six Park and Ride sites, however, remain at £3.50 per day.

Independent policy analysts at the Liverpool City Region Policy Unit note that the combined measures may have a limited impact on the poorest households. “A council tax freeze helps middle-income families the most,” said a report released on Thursday. “For renters and those in social housing, who pay no council tax directly, the parking cut is irrelevant unless they own a car.” The council’s own impact assessment acknowledges that 42 percent of Liverpool households do not have access to a private vehicle, according to the 2024 Liverpool Household Survey.

What comes next

The freeze and parking cuts are funded by a £3.1 million transfer from the council’s capital contingency reserve and £1.1 million in projected savings from reduced overtime in the parking enforcement team. The council’s chief financial officer, Kate Sullivan, told the meeting that the reserve still holds £16.8 million after the transfer. A formal amendment to the 2026/27 budget must be approved by the full council in September, and the parking fee reduction will be subject to a statutory consultation period ending on August 17.

Residents living in areas with high parking demand, such as the Georgian Quarter and the Baltic Triangle, may also see changes to resident permit schemes later this year. The council’s transport committee is expected to debate a new emissions-based permit pricing structure in October. For now, the message from Thursday’s vote is clear: the city is trying to give households a little breathing room, even if advocacy groups say the relief is modest compared to the rise in energy bills and food prices that Liverpool families continue to report as their top financial worry.