INCOME tax remains stable under this Government, which should be a cause for celebration.

The trouble is, look beyond what New Labour would like you to see and the situation is far less clear cut.

Local taxation is on the rise, with council tax increasing way above the rate of inflation - with the police precept that pays for local law enforcement set to shoot up too.

Della Cannings, North Yorkshire's Chief Constable, last night reiterated her message that the public has to be prepared to pay for an improved police service.

Ms Cannings believes that up to 200 officers could be switched from administration duties to policing North Yorkshire - but only if the local "police tax" went up accordingly.

The higher precept would allow the force to streamline its systems, pull officers away from administrative duties and put them back into what the Chief Constable describes as "more visible policing".

Such a rise to pay for what people always say they want may seem fair enough. Yet look again and it isn't fair at all.

This is not a criticism of the Chief Constable, who is only doing what she has to under the present system. But it is definitely a criticism of a Government that crows about keeping income tax down while hiking up all sorts of other, less visible, forms of taxation.

Income tax may be unpopular but it is basically a fair tax: the more you earn, the more you pay.

Council tax, on the other hand, is based on property values and so can throw up all sorts of anomalies, especially at times of rampant house price inflation.

Take two families living side by side. One set of neighbours is wealthy and in work, the other is retired and struggling on a pension. Yet because each family lives in a similar house, they will be charged the same rate.

This is unfair and shows that a hidden tax is often a devious tax, especially when the Government passes the buck to local councils and then disclaims all responsibility for what is going on.

Updated: 12:01 Thursday, January 23, 2003