Stafford Borough Council has written off more than £128,000 in unpaid business rates, with Walton councillor Jill Hood questioning the way some debts are pursued.
The decision was made at a cabinet meeting on Thursday 12 March, where members agreed to write off five business rate debts totalling £128,447 after the sums were judged to be unrecoverable.
The discussion was borough wide, but one of the questions raised came from Councillor Jill Hood, who represents Walton.
She said she was uneasy about the contrast between debts that end up being written off and the way some residents in council tax arrears are chased for money.
Hood said: “We write off so much in debt that we can’t recover, yet a family who are struggling to pay their council tax, and ended up owing quite a lot of money, are chased by bailiffs in a very aggressive way.
“And then they find they also have to pay the entirety of the year that’s coming.
“It just doesn’t seem right to me. I just wish that we could find a way of recovering debt in a less aggressive manner.”
Her comments came during a wider discussion on the pressure facing businesses and the council’s efforts to collect what is owed.
Councillor Ant Reid, cabinet member for economic development and planning, said residents could help local firms by continuing to spend money with them.
He said: “We talk about the challenges the retail, hospitality and leisure establishments will have in the coming years.
“I would like to encourage anyone hearing us to go and enjoy the hospitality section in our area, that is one way to help them pay all their bills, not just their business rates.
“It’s the same with leisure, go bowling, go to the gym, go out there and enjoy the local shops we have got in our three towns and the farm shops as well.
“If these businesses have more custom, they will be more successful and they will be able to be stable and be able to afford the business rates, so please help our local community by helping our economy.”
That wider point will ring true in Stone, where independent shops, cafés, pubs and service businesses make up a big part of the local economy.
A report to cabinet said collecting business rates is expected to be more difficult in the coming year, particularly for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses.
Government relief for those premises has reduced from 75 per cent last year to 40 per cent this year. New and increased rateable values have also pushed up bills for some properties.
The meeting heard that £59.6 million was due to the council in business rates for 2025/26, with 81.8 per cent collected by the end of December. That was slightly down on the 83 per cent collected at the same stage the year before.
Council tax collection was also slightly lower.
Councillor Ralph Cooke, cabinet member for resources, said 82.8 per cent of the £111.8 million due in council tax for 2025/26 had been collected by the end of December, compared with 83.1 per cent at the same point a year earlier.
For Stone residents, the cabinet discussion touched on two issues likely to feel familiar, the strain on local businesses, and concern over how debt recovery affects people already under financial pressure.
