Scottish Labour cools on tax

Main parties favour change

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All three candidates for the Scottish Labour leadership are now reported to be backing an end to council tax and favouring a different form of property tax.

Labour is moving in line with previous commitments from the SNP and the Liberal Democrats to end the existing tax.

The three candidates to replace Wendy Alexander are Andy Kerr, Iain Gray and Cathy Jamieson.

Mr Kerr, a former health minister, has said in a newspaper interview that he wants to see the council tax scrapped.

He is quoted on The Scotsman's website: "While people are paying so much of their monthly income in council tax in comparison to their mortgage or income tax, they feel as though the system is not working for them."

Mr Gray, a former enterprise minister, is committed to "replacing or reforming the council "tax" and his website says he favours a new property tax to replace it, if possible.

"I believe in a property tax, but we should be open to other ideas including elements of land value tax too, if they are found to be workable," he said.

A spokesman for Ms Jamieson, an ex-justice minister, said: "She believes there needs to be a property-based tax, but there is still a lot of work needing to be done."

The views of the leadership contenders are seen a significant shift since the party tabled its submission to the Burt review into local government finance in 2005.

The Scottish government is considering responses to its consultation paper on a local income tax.