Brash's Council Tax Hypocrisy: Hartlepool's Most Vulnerable Forced to Pay Whilst The Labour MP Claims His All Back...

The scale of Council Tax support Inequality couldn't be anymore stark, as Hartlepool Labour MP claims back his entire Council Tax on his London Property on Expenses, whilst struggling locals in Hartlepool are lucky if they can claim a 90% reduction in their Council Tax Bill.

10th May 2025

In a town already buckling under the weight of economic neglect, rising bills, and a spiralling housing crisis, it’s now emerged the very man elected to represent Hartlepool in Parliament—Labour MP Jonathan Brash—is claiming back every single penny of his council tax for a second home in London, whilst his constituents are left to cover up to 10% of theirs out of their already stretched pockets.

He's claimed back his entire £955 Council Tax Bill

Its fuelling further calls for Hartlepool's Council Tax Support system to be brought back up to 100%

According to the most recent parliamentary expenses report, Brash claimed £955 in council tax for his London property—on top of £18,000 in rent, £907 in hotel stays, £88 in utilities, and over £18,000 in office costs, bringing his total expenses bill since taking office to a staggering £38,383.06.

Meanwhile, in Hartlepool, some of the lowest-paid and most vulnerable residents are being pursued aggressively by the local council which in 2023 was declared an authority of no public confidence for council tax debts that, for many, should never have existed in the first place.....

Its reported that the Town MP claimed back over £38k in Expenses for the year...

Hartlepool Borough Council currently limits its Council Tax Reduction Scheme to a maximum of 90%—a policy that effectively forces thousands of struggling households to find up to £200 a year just to stay on the right side of the councils 'aggressive' enforcement regime. For people juggling rent or mortgage payments, skyrocketing utility bills, and the cost of living crisis, this shortfall is often unaffordable. Yet instead of compassion, they’re met with court summonses, enforcement notices, and visits from bailiffs..

What’s worse is that these are not people actively dodging tax—they’re the working poor, pensioners, single parents, and those with disabilities. Some simply too ill to work. Others are just about managing. And now they must somehow find extra cash that their MP doesn’t even need to think about, because he claims his all back from the public purse.

It isn't just an issue of fiscal policy either—it’s one of morality and accountability.

Why should it ever be acceptable for any Member of Parliament to enjoy a 100% rebate on their council tax bill for a property in London, whilst supporting a local policy that sees their own constituents penalised for being poor & unable to claim a full discount on their Council Tax Bill ?

This glaring double standards is said to shine a light on the deep disconnect between the Champagne Socialists in power and the people they're supposedly elected to serve, with critics claiming its yet another example of the political elite protecting their own comforts whilst imposing austerity-lite conditions on communities already teetering on the edge of financial ruin...

Even a leading charity say's things need to change...

Council Tax support replaced the former Council Tax benefit in 2013, with the Conservative Government under David Cameron giving local councils the power to create their own support system under the name 'Local Council Tax Support' or LCTS as its known for short. However since 2013, the scheme has been criticised as widely discriminatory & failing to protect the most vulnerable residents, with one national charity calling for the scheme to be brought back under national government control, claiming the support system has created a postcode lottery of support across the country, with a claimant in Hartlepool with the same financial set of circumstances as someone who lives in County Durham only able to claim 90% of a reduction on their council tax bill.

However, In County Durham, just 8 miles away, its 100%, with the Double Standards of the Labour MP likely to stoke even more public resentment in a town where Labours already facing a barrage of criticism & support said to be 'plummeting', as voters shift their support to Reform UK, and voters learning the stark reality that a 2025 Labour Government is no better than a 2010 Conservative one !