COUNCIL tax payers are having to foot the bill for an £18m Government “stealth tax,” councillors have said.

County councillors have now lost patience with “passing on the burden” of adult social care and backed a motion to lobby Government to provide more funding for the service.

This year, residents of Cumbria will pay an extra two per cent on council tax bills towards the spiralling cost of adult social care in the county, which is home to a “super ageing” population, higher than the England and regional average.

Adult social care provides elderly residential care for the physically frail and those with dementia, along with assistance to those not in care, such as community meals, transport and day care services in the community.

For the past three years, council tax bills have risen two per cent each year to pay more for these services – equivalent to a six per cent rise over that period.

But the hike is not allowed in 2020-21 and independent councillor Robert Betton has won support for a motion to lobby the Government for more cash and to clear up the future funding uncertainty.

Carlisle councillor Mr Betton called the council tax rises a “stealth tax unfairly imposed on residents” to pay for services to the most vulnerable in society.

He said: “The Conservative government sneakily moved the tax-raising burden on to local government and then had the cheek to dictate a cap of six per cent over three years to fund adult social care.

“This is the last year that this council can levy that tax on the people of Cumbria but have they told us how they are going to pay for it going forward? No. Despite promising to publish the green paper on social care for adults last year, we are still none the wiser.”

Peter Thornton, the cabinet member for finance for the county council, said the green paper would detail how adult social care could be funded from 2020-21 onwards but said the Government’s mind was on fixated on “Brexit”, which meant the new funding policy was now “700 days overdue”.

County council leader Stewart Young supported Mr Betton’s motion and agreed it was a stealth tax.

Mr Young said the extra two per cent was a way that the Government could “pass on” the job of raising taxes and hand it to local councils.

“It’s worse than that because Government has reduced taxes and then asked local council tax payers to make up the difference.

“Next year adult social care will bring in £18m out of £236m of council tax in Cumbria,” said the leader.