WHILE not wishing to pay any more council tax than I have to, a few facts and figures may help to put the furore over capping into context.

In the tax year 2003/4, council tax rose by 13.14 per cent. Admittedly this was the year our police precept rose by 76 per cent: it has since been unbundled from council tax, as has the fire service charge. There was no talk of capping then. In 1999/2000, the council tax rise was 3.2 per cent (no prizes for guessing it was a local council election year!). The following year the rise was 7.6 per cent, once again no mention of capping.

It is a trifle ingenuous of Mr Woolas to invoke capping now that his party no longer holds sway on the local council.

Des Feakes,

Cedarwood Close,

Acomb, York.

Updated: 09:57 Monday, April 03, 2006