Workington MP Mark Jenkinson has called on the new Cumberland authority to cut council tax when it comes into power.
Mr Jenkinson, a fierce critic of the county council, said the new authority – which will replace Allerdale, Copeland, Carlisle and the county councils from April – should help taxpayers.
The Conservative MP said the savings made by the shake-up of local government should be passed on to the people of Cumberland – and blasted the Labour-run Cumbria County Council for its failings to do so.
The county council currently takes the lion’s share of the levy, then district councils, the police and crime commissioner and parish councils all take a cut.
Mr Jenkinson said that the county had failed the ‘Cumberland’ area and claimed investment from his Government to improve roads was mainly being spent in South Cumbria.
He added: “If the new authority is serious about helping those who are struggling, they should cut council tax. This is within their gift, and such a move would complement the central Government schemes launched to help people manage the cost of living.
“From day one we should see the buck-passing stop, we should see much-reduced duplication and we should immediately start to see the financial benefits of streamlining local government.
“We must level down council tax, and we must not allow Labour to level down our services, our opportunities or our aspirations.”
The Allerdale district now has the lowest council tax in Cumbria and Mr Jenkinson said that was thanks to the Conservative administration.
Mark is fighting to see Carlisle and Copeland brought down to match whilst ensuring that frontline service centres in town centres remain open and accessible.
He has also launched a survey to gain a broader understanding of the views of his constituents at https://markshar.es/cutcounciltax
