Kemi Badenoch Instructs Lawyers to Challenge Government Over Wandsworth Council's 94% Tax Hike

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has announced that the party has instructed lawyers to explore legal action against the UK government over central funding reductions, following a proposed 94% council tax hike in the south-west London borough of Wandsworth.

The Conservative-led local authority put forward the dramatic increase—which would add roughly £958 to an average Band D bill—after projecting an £84 million annual reduction in central government financial support over the next three years. Wandsworth has historically maintained some of the lowest local tax rates in the country, with average Band D households paying slightly above £1,000, compared with over £2,000 in several other London boroughs.

Speaking during an interview on BBC Newsnight, Badenoch described the scale of the planned rise as "outrageous" but insisted the local council had been left with few alternatives due to the withdrawal of central grants. She claimed the borough was facing a 40% reduction in its funding settlement and argued that ministers were effectively redirecting public resources away from areas governed by political opponents.

"I think it is outrageous that Wandsworth Council is having to put up council tax," Badenoch said during the broadcast. "But they're not doing it because they want to. It is because the government has taken away 40% of their funding. So we have actually instructed lawyers, as the Conservative Party, to see if we can challenge the government on this decision."

The row centres on broader revisions to the national local authority funding formula, designed to reallocate resources across England. While ministers maintain the reforms direct money to councils with higher levels of social and economic need, local leaders in several London boroughs contend the changes disproportionately penalise their communities.

In response to the sharp drop in grant allocations, central government lifted the standard 5% annual cap on council tax increases for Wandsworth, alongside several other local authorities, including Westminster, Richmond, Kensington and Chelsea, and the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead in Berkshire.

When asked about the impact on local residents—given that Wandsworth bills would still remain comparatively lower than in many parts of the country even after the increase—Badenoch stressed the immediate strain on household finances. She argued that a sudden doubling of a household bill creates severe pressure regardless of national averages, adding that families operate on fixed budgets that cannot easily absorb sharp hikes.

The leader of the opposition also defended her previous record as a local government minister during past Conservative administrations, rejecting comparisons with past grant reductions and questioning the proportionality of the funding adjustments being imposed on Wandsworth.

Within Wandsworth, the proposed increase announced at a council meeting has triggered intense political debate. The Conservative deputy leader of the council stated that the authority did not view the sharp increase as fair or welcome, pledging to challenge the central government settlement through every available avenue.

Additionally, Wandsworth is among a group of London local authorities, including Westminster, Richmond, and Kensington and Chelsea, consulting on plans to invoke the Sustainable Communities Act in an effort to challenge the government's funding formula changes.

However, the proposal has drawn sharp criticism from local political opponents. Simon Hogg, the leader of the Labour opposition group on Wandsworth Council, condemned the planned tax increase as unnecessary and accused the Conservative administration of financial mismanagement.

Meanwhile, three local Labour Members of Parliament—Rosena Allin-Khan, Fleur Anderson, and Marsha de Cordova—have declined to endorse the council's formal appeal against the funding cuts. The MPs argued that the borough had been left in a robust financial position prior to the local elections earlier this year when the Conservatives assumed control.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government defended the national settlement, noting that more than £78 billion in funding has been allocated for local authorities next year, with the vast majority unringfenced to allow councils flexibility in determining local spending.

The ministry stated that it is overhauling an outdated system to ensure funding is distributed according to relative need, while maintaining transitional protections to prevent local authorities from encountering sudden fiscal shortfalls. The government reiterated that individual local councils hold the statutory responsibility for setting their tax levels and urged leaders to prioritise taxpayers when making final budgetary determinations.

Wandsworth Council is expected to formally vote on and finalise its budget and council tax rates for the upcoming financial year in early 2027.