More details of how Reading Borough Council has managed to keep it's headline council tax rise down to 1.9% have been revealed in a recent Audit Commission report. The latest figures show that 10% of Reading Borough Council's revenue now comes from sales, fees and charges such as parking and bus lane fines, rather than from council tax.

However, bribing staff with a prize of £10 per week to improve Direct Debit payment of council tax failed to significantly reduce costs so the council hopes to boost these figures over the next few years with initiatives such as 'Park or be Taken for a Ride' and "Pay Through the Nose If You Throw" schemes and the extension of the Readi-ID card to all residents who wish to enter the town centre's pubs and clubs after 7pm.