THE increase in Herefordshire Council Tax is a matter of regret and, as a pensioner on a virtually fixed income, the extra money will be difficult to find.

However, I think the populace should be aware of the difficulties our councillors are experiencing in setting the level of the tax.

As far as I am aware, two major influences are totally beyond the council's control, namely the per capita grant from central government and the increasing directives which come from Westminster with dire penalties for non-compliance, but with no funding for their implementation.

On the first point, I am informed the new formula has resulted in Herefordshire receiving one of the lowest per capita figures in the country. An example of the second point is I believe that the education budget has had to be increased by a mere £2 million this year, by diktat, whatever the needs identified by our representatives.

With a new council, there will always be some changes of emphasis, but I find it of concern that critical improvements are now needed in the council's IT network, five years after the council was created.

Finally, with the change to having a separate precept for the (joint) fire service, I object to paying my share of the £1.2 million required for the "creation of balances".

Why was the appropriate proportion of the council's reserves not allocated to it? Why is this initial level equivalent to some four years of capital expenditure?

These examples alone account for £4 million this year and if we got the average grant from Westmins-ter, we would be facing an increase very much more in line with inflation.

John Dutton, Oak Drive, Colwall.