Martin Lewis has shared an update on the proposed changes to council tax following the announcement of a consultation has been launched. The consultation is discussing the potential of change to how council tax debt is collection, along with making it easier for UK households to challenge the bracket they are in. Minister for Local Government and English Devolution, Jim McMahon OBE said: 鈥淎s part of our Plan for Change, we鈥檙e putting working people first.” Read more: Martin Lewis’ MSE delivers verdict on if Premium Bonds ‘worth it’ after cuts He added: 鈥淲e are listening and taking action to make council tax fairer, more transparent and easier to manage. Under our plans, local government will be there to support, and not to punish, people who fall behind.鈥 Council tax debt collection has been particularly criticised for its aggressiveness, with the 52-year-old finance guru calling the current system “broken”. He explained: “Many parts of the Council Tax system are broken, and having called for some of these fixes for nearly 20 years, I鈥檓 delighted the government has listened and rapidly launched this long-due consultation, including many of the administration areas I hear the most complaints on. 鈥淐ouncil Tax rapid and aggressive debt collection methods currently hurt millions and disproportionately affect those with mental health problems.鈥 鈥淧lus, as council tax bands haven鈥檛 been revalued since the stop-gap drive-by valuations first done back in 1991 鈥 while looking at that isn鈥檛 in the scope of this consultation 鈥 it鈥檚 only right that if people think they鈥檙e wrongly in too high a band, as 100,000s likely are, the government is consulting on making it easier to challenge, so people can pay the right price.鈥 Toby Murray, policy and campaigns manager at Debt Justice, said: 鈥淭he vast majority of people aren鈥檛 avoiding council tax, they simply can鈥檛 afford it. 鈥淧eople in council tax arrears are overwhelmingly on low incomes, and many are living in poverty . Rather than help, councils are sending in the bailiffs 鈥 punishing people for struggling with their bills. 鈥淐ouncils should end the use of bailiffs for council tax debt collection and instead introduce urgent reforms, including a duty of care to protect people most at risk.鈥 Join our dedicated BirminghamLive WhatsApp community for the latest updates sent straight to your phone as they happen. You can also sign up to our Money Saving Newsletter which is sent out daily via email with all the updates you need to know on the cost of living, including DWP and HMRC changes, benefits, payments, banks, bills and shopping discounts. Get the top stories in your inbox to browse through at a time that suits you.