Leader of Wandsworth Council, Cllr Ravi Govindia has written in the Evening Standard about how Wandsworth Conservatives have been able to offer residents a consistently low Council Tax, in response to a letter from another reader.
He wrote:
"Wandsworth's council tax remains low because over decades of steady leadership we have challenged every service to improve and innovate over and over again. We are constantly looking for more efficient and effective ways of serving our residents and supporting our businesses.
"In the eighties we were among the very first councils to invite private and voluntary organisations to run local services, generating vast savings and keeping the town hall free from debt. With low borrowing costs we have been better able to invest for long term stability. This virtuous circle keeps our council tax low while our public services and facilities are among the very best in London.
"In today's tough financial conditions we are going further than ever before to improve efficiency and harness skills, ideas and resources from outside the town hall. For example our superb local libraries are now run by social enterprise GLL and we are committed to sharing staff with Richmond Council which could save a further £10m every year.
"We have proven track record for sound financial management in Wandsworth but this has to be married with a willingness to experiment, take risks and embrace new ideas. A low monthly council tax bill is just one of the benefits this formula brings to Wandsworth residents."
A typical Band D property in Conservative-run Wandsworth pays £683 per year in Council Tax, compared to £1,238 in neighbouring Labour-run Lambeth and £1,397 in Labour-run Merton.