TOTAL council tax bills in Ipswich and the Babergh district are to go up by less than three per cent in April it was confirmed today.In Ipswich council tax bills are to rise by 2.

TOTAL council tax bills in Ipswich and the Babergh district are to go up by less than three per cent in April it was confirmed today.

In Ipswich council tax bills are to rise by 2.69pc when the county, borough and police authority elements are taken into account.

This will see the council tax of a Band B property - the most numerous in the town - go up from £1,021 to £1,049 a year.

The government classes Band D properties as the benchmark for council tax calculation, and in Ipswich the annual tax for these homes goes up from £1,313 to £1,348 a year.

However only a small proportion of the town's homes are in this band.

In Babergh the average rise will be 2.99pc - although this varies because parish councils levy their own extra council tax on top of the other elements.

In Pinewood a Band D property's council tax will go up from £1,180 to £1,215.

Suffolk County Council is due to approve its final budget - with a rise of 2.54 pc - tomorrow and Ipswich Council's budget debate is on Wednesday.

Babergh will confirm its budget at its meeting on Thursday.

Suffolk's opposition Conservative group is not expected to oppose the budget, and will not be putting forward its own alternative budget.

However the ruling Conservative/Liberal Democrat administration at the borough council has such a narrow majority that all parties will be anxious to ensure they get all their councillors to that meeting on Wednesday evening.

The new council tax bills will come into force in early April.