COUNCIL tax bills are going up in Weymouth and West Dorset.

And residents will have to fork out twice as much cash to Weymouth and Portland Borough Council as those in West Dorset pay the district council.

Weymouth and Portland Borough Council has set its share of the council tax charge at two per cent for the coming year.

A band D taxpayer will have to pay £267.56 as the borough council’s share of the tax while owners of a similar property in neighbouring West Dorset are charged just £124.80 by West Dorset District Council.

It means the average band D property owner in Weymouth and Portland will pay a total of £1,685.08 in 2010/11 to include the charges set by other authorities, while a band D resident in West Dorset will have to pay £1,553.48 plus the local council precept in their area.

The borough council’s levy was approved at a full meeting of members at Weymouth’s Guildhall.

The authority’s brief holder for finance and assets, Coun Peter Chapman, told the meeting the increase had been kept to its lowest level for 14 years.

An officer’s report published before the meeting said the borough’s precept increase of two per cent, if approved, would allow the borough to set aside an extra £200,000 this year for repairs and maintenance.

Coun Howard Legg opposed the two per cent increase and moved for it to be raised.

He said the extra money could be used to begin a programme of repairs to public buildings in the borough.

Coun Mike Goodman, opposing Coun Legg’s proposal, said: “I’m a firm believer in allowing people to retain as much of their income as they possibly can.”

Coun Legg’s proposed amendment was voted down by members before the proposed increase of two per cent was voted through.

West Dorset District Council approved a one per cent rise in its portion of the council tax last week. The increase equates to a £1.23 increase for a band D property, taking the amount payable for a band D property to £124.80 for the 2010/11 financial year.

Council leader Robert Gould proposed the increase and it was backed by the council members.

He said that the authority was trying to keep council tax bills as low as possible to help people cope during the recession. West Dorset District Council collects the whole council tax bill from local people.

But it only keeps around eight per cent of the total.

The rest is passed to Dorset County Council – £1,168.29 at band D for 2010/11 – as well as the police force, fire service and town and parish councils if they make a charge.

A spokesman for Weymouth and Portland Borough Council said the differences between their council tax charge and that set by West Dorset arose from the fact that there are more band B properties in Weymouth and Portland than in West Dorset, where most properties are band D.

They said another factor that has kept Weymouth and Portland Borough Council’s charge higher than that of West Dorset District Council is the amount of money that now has to be set aside for repairs and maintenance to public buildings in Weymouth.