Nearly 30,000 Oldham homes pay more council tax than Buckingham Palace, new analysis has shown.

As reported by The Economist, the royal residence at Buckingham Palace was charged a £1,824.10 council tax bill by Westminster Council last year – despite being in the council’s highest ‘H’ band.

In Oldham, all properties in band ‘C’ and above pay higher than this amount – meaning a total of 29,946, or 30 per cent, pay more than the palace.

Additionally, a further 17,600 band ‘B’ properties were billed just £101.79 less than the palace last year.

An Oldham Council spokesperson said: "Hello, Just coming back to you re your council tax query. The figures quoted for Oldham are correct for 2023/24.

"But we don’t have anything further to add re the info below. Kind regards."

Please note, this article previously stated that Oldham Council refused to comment. The article has now been updated with Oldham Council's original comment following a complaint.

Nearby Bolton Council leader Nick Peel said similar figures there showed ‘inherent problems with the way local councils are funded’.

Sign up to our newsletters to get the latest stories sent straight to your inbox.

In Bolton, more than 20,000 households paid more council tax than Buckingham Palace – around 17 per cent of the borough's properties.

Bolton Council leader Cllr Nick Peel said: “This highlights the inherent problems with the way local councils are funded.

“In Bolton, we do all we can to keep council tax bills as low as possible while still being able to fund the vital front-line services we all rely on.

“Other areas, many of them in the South of England, are able to set lower bills because of so much additional income from business rates, tourism and other sources.

“Council Tax is not a fair or equitable way to tax people, as it is not based on the ability to pay.

“The government should look at a fairer way to fund local councils, so that struggling families do not end up paying as much or even more than the wealthiest, which this research has highlighted.”

Government responds

A Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities spokesperson said: “We have recently announced an additional £600 million support package for councils across England, increasing their overall proposed funding for next year to £64.7 billion - a 7.5 per cent increase in cash terms.

“Councils are responsible for their own finances and set council tax levels, but we have been clear they should be mindful of cost-of-living pressures.

“We continue to protect taxpayers from excessive council tax increases through referendum principles.”

Buckingham Palace did not respond to a request for comment.