Council taxpayers’ bills in the Canterbury district are unlikely to rise.

The council is proposing that its portion of the tax, known as a precept, will remain at £178.65 for an average band D property for the financial year 2011/12.

Kent County Council, the fire brigade and the police – the other major precepting authorities – are also expected to hold their charges for the coming year.

Canterbury City Council leader John Gilbey says planning and “sound economic management” had allowed the council to build a strong financial position.

“It’s not been painless and there have been some staff redundancies,” he said.

“But services will remain unaffected and people have not got to worry about that. We will maintain our services as they currently are or improve them.

“Running a council these days is like running a business and you have to be looking ahead and so we have not used our reserves at all.

“That money is there in there in case we need it should something change.”

Kent County Council is holding its council tax precept at £1,047.78 for an average band D property.

The Kent Police Authority precept is expected to remain at £136.68 while the Kent and Medway Fire and Rescue Authority is expected to keep its at £67.95.

However, people living in areas with parish councils will find that their bills will rise.

Cllr Peter Lee, the council’s member for finance, told a meeting of the council’s executive committee last Thursday that there had been plans to raise the city council’s precept by 2.5 per cent, but this idea had been abandoned.

“The new government, when it came in, offered councils a 2.5 per cent increase in their Government grants so putting up council tax would simply have served to increase people’s council taxes while not actually offering them any more for their money,” Cllr Lee said.

There is some £28 million in deposits and reserves which, Cllr Lee added, could be used for projects in future years.