COUNCIL tax payers across rural Dorset will be expected to pay the same amount for the unitary council share of their bills from the first day the new council comes into being.

Councillors say without that happening the new authority would start life in April 2019 short of cash.

It had originally been proposed to bring all the tax rates from the different districts and borough councils into line gradually over a period of five, 10 or even 20 years, although having the same rate from the start was one of the options.

Bournemouth and Poole have opted to bring their payments into line over a number of years.

For most people in rural Dorset the harmonisation of tax rates will have only a small effect – although those in North Dorset could see an increase of around 2.6 per cent as a result of the harmonisation process. Weymouth residents may gain from the exercise with a slight reduction, depending on what the rate is finally set at.

The decision was taken at a joint council committee in Dorchester.

Chairman of the task and finish group which explored the options, Jeff Cant, said that unless tax rates were harmonised at the start it could lead to the new authority starting work with a £6million debt and having to make cuts to services from the outset.

A spokesman for the Dorset Area Joint Committee said after the meeting that there would be no debt, but the new authority could start with a £6m shortfall of funding.

The committee also heard that it was now thought unlikely that the transfer of assets and staff would take place over a period of a few weeks, as originally hoped.

Cllr Gary Suttle, from Purbeck, said he feared that it could be two years before everything was settled.