Wednesday briefing: Is Rachel Reeves about to overhaul the dreaded council tax?

<p>In today’s newsletter: ​The local tax remains based on property values from 1991. Now, with services stretched, ministers face the near-impossible task of rewriting the rules</p><p></p><p>Good morning. Britain’s fiscal outlook is bleak. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, faces the daunting task of closing a £40bn black hole in the public finances.</p><p>There is intense speculation over how she intends to, as runs that oft-used phrase, balance the books. This week, my colleagues have reported that the chancellor is considering a new “proportional” <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/money/2025/aug/18/rachel-reeves-stamp-duty-property-tax-council-tax">property tax</a>. It would mark a radical overhaul of stamp duty and council tax.</p><p><em><strong>Ukraine </strong></em>| Donald Trump <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2025/aug/19/ukraine-live-updates-trump-zelenskyy-putin-meeting-europe-latest-news">ruled out</a> the deployment of American troops in Ukraine in his first interview after yesterday’s White House meeting with the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and European leaders.</p><p><em><strong>UK news </strong></em>| Keir Starmer’s asylum plans have been <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025/aug/19/high-court-judge-orders-closure-of-essex-asylum-hotel-after-far-right-protests">plunged into turmoil</a> after a high court ruling blocked people seeking refuge from being housed in an Essex hotel.</p><p><em><strong>Gaza </strong></em>| Israel has said it will deliver its response to international mediators by Friday over a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/19/israel-to-respond-by-friday-gaza-truce-plan-hamas">new Gaza ceasefire plan</a> accepted by Hamas amid mounting pressure for