The pound in a pensioner's pocket or purse has become the latest point of contention for politicians. CHARLOTTE PERCIVAL and JAMES SLACK look into claims that older people have lost out in the cash stakes.

WITH a general election not far off, and the battle for votes hotting up, Tories have claimed that soaring council tax bills in York have snatched back up to 40 per cent of state pension increases since Tony Blair came to power.

The Conservatives have produced new figures which they say show how pensioners on fixed incomes were hit as Labour allowed council taxes to increase above inflation.

In York, single pensioners have seen their pensions rise by £892 from 1997 to April this year.

But the Tories say council tax bills have gone up by £355 over the same period - swallowing up 40 per cent, of the increase.

The figure, based on an average Band D home, was even higher in other parts of the county. In Harrogate, where bills have increased by £427, 50 per cent of the increase is being taken back.

This is also the case in Selby (£431 increase in bills); Ryedale (up £417); and Scarborough (£455).

But York MP Hugh Bayley said the poorest pensioners would be unaffected.

He said: "Any pensioner on the basic state pension, which are the figures this article is quoting, gets their council tax paid in full, which means they pay no council tax at all.

"But for pensioners on a higher income, I accept that soaring council tax bills are a real problem, even though the Government is increasing its grants to councils by much more than the rate of inflation. That's why councils have to get their spending under control."

York pensioner Peter Richardson, 76, was angry about the situation.

He said: "It's the most diabolical situation over the last two years of anything that's happened in the city of York.

"It hits pensioners extremely hard."

The Tories' local government spokesman, Caroline Spelman, said fewer pensioners were now claiming council tax benefit because of more means testing and more complex application forms.

Fewer than two in three pensioners who were entitled to council tax benefit were claiming it.

City of York Council has been trying to increase benefit take-up, holding awareness events with benefits advisors on hand, throughout York.

Updated: 08:49 Thursday, June 10, 2004