A Medway councillor has suggested a way to make local government more effective in Kent is to remove all small councils and create one Kent-wide unitary authority - along with a number of changes to how council tax is raised.

On the Kent Politics Podcast, Cllr Andrew Lawrence (Con) spoke about the details of a ConservativeHome article he wrote titled “How to reform local government finance” in which he argued the council tax increase cap should be removed and a local income tax should replace the current property value-based approach.

He outlined how the current system, where council tax payments are calculated based upon the value of the property, were unfair because some people are asset rich but cash-poor and the switch to a local income tax would be more equitable.

He also said the removal of the council tax increase cap, which limits increases to just under 5% per year without a referendum, would mean there could be greater distinction between political parties at local elections and encourage participation.

Cllr Lawrence said: “Why is it only 30% of people bother to vote at local elections? Because they’re not affected by what we do here.

“Taxes drive people out to vote, almost always. As a councillor I want to provide the services people want, but I also want to have money to invest in place.

“At the moment, we’re basically social services, bin collections, and we cut the hedges every now and then.

“If we really want to transform Medway, we really need a different form of local government finance.

“As a Conservative, I believe the decision-making and the tax-raising powers should be as close to the people who use those services as possible.”

Cllr Lawrence, who was first elected to Medway Council in May 2023, but had previously served on Lewisham council in the 1990s, said he was speaking from his own personal view and knew some Tory colleagues would not agree.

However, he said it could take significant restructuring of local government, such as getting rid of all district and borough councils, and even Medway Council as a unitary authority, and creating one Kent-wide unitary.

He said this could sweep away all of the civil servants working in those councils and create a more streamlined system - which, combined with the tax changes he suggested, could raise more revenue itself and be less reliant on central government.

In the latest edition of the Kent Politics Podcast, Cllr Lawrence also talked about why Margaret Thatcher is such an important figure in his political view, his lonely stint as the only Tory on Lewisham council, and whether he can get along with Labour colleagues after fiery debates.

Our reporters also discuss the biggest stories from across the county, including the School Streets scheme expansion in Medway, how successful Canterbury’s park and ride scheme actually is, and what the reason is behind the sky-rocketing number of road closures in Kent.

They also talk about the controversy around Sir Keir Starmer accepting freebies, including clothes and glasses, and ask the age-old question: do politicians need to be paid more to avoid them accepting giveaways?

The weekly podcast, which launched earlier this year, brings together local democracy reporters, Simon Finlay, Robert Boddy, and Dan Esson, and KM’s senior news editor Nikki White.

Simon covers Kent County Council while Robert reports on Medway Council and Dan specialises in borough and district councils - while Nikki takes a look at the national picture in Westminster Watch.

You can listen to the podcast at IM Listening, or download it from Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts and TuneIn – just search for Kent Politics Podcast.

Readers can also keep up-to-date with the latest political news on our dedicated Kent Politics page.

New episodes are available each Friday.