Plans to exempt terminally ill people from council tax has won backing from Welsh councillors

Dale Spridgeon, Local democracy reporter

A plan to exempt terminally ill people from council tax has won backing from Anglesey councillors.

Anglesey County Council’s executive committee agreed to recommendations that its council approve an amendment to its council tax discretionary relief policy.

It supported introducing a 100% discount for households with a terminally ill occupant, during a meeting on Tuesday (February 24).

The measure aims to provide “compassionate financial support to residents during end-of-life care to reduce hardship”.

The policy change would apply to households where a terminally ill individual occupied the property as their sole or main residence.

A report said it would have a “significant positive impact as terminal illness often leads to reduced income and increased costs”.

It stated that offering a 100% discount “alleviated financial hardship for households already vulnerable to socio-economic disadvantage”.

The executive also agreed that the policy should be implemented from April 1, 2026 and approved delegating authority to the Revenues & Benefits Service Manager to administer the scheme, and make any minor operational adjustments required.

It would also be monitored and its impact reviewed after 12 months.

The amendment to the current policy will be voted on at the next full council meeting.

Currently, the council tax discretionary relief policy “offers limited relief” in exceptional circumstances, primarily through hardship provisions, a report said.

The proposed changes will need to be agreed at a full council meeting.

It aims to provide support for residents diagnosed as terminally ill, defined as a person diagnosed by a registered medical practitioner with an illness or condition that cannot be cured; and is likely to lead to death.

Director of Function (Resources) Marc Jones said staff had researched how other councils implemented similar schemes, using the SR1 medical form, but that Anglesey had proposed widening the eligibility.

He explained: “The person in question usually only applies for the SR1 form to quickly access benefits. However, there are some people who have the money or don’t want to try to claim a benefit by applying through the SR1 form.

“The executive has therefore agreed to accept applications from those people who have not applied for SR1 – but with confirmation from their doctor that they are ill and close to dying.

“Our hope is that this provides more people with access to the exception.

“This differs with some councils that have already started a scheme where they only allow the exemption for people that have completed an SR1 form.”

The discretionary discount would provide exemption for one year only. If the person died during that 12 months, the relief would continue for two months afterwards to help the family.

Council Leader Cllr Gary Pritchard thanked Cllr Jeff Evans, who was not a member of the executive, but who had brought the matter forward.

He said: “Cllr Evans came to see me after seeing in the media that Manchester’s council had adopted a similar policy, in line with the requirements of Marie Curie.

“I’m really happy that we as an executive have been able to work on this, and glad to be able to approve this.

“Having one less burden in the last year of a person’s life is something we were more than willing to allow as a council.”