COUNCIL tax bills across Hertfordshire look set to rise by more than ten per cent as a result of increased costs placed on the county council by central government.

Since the provisional government announcement in December, Hertfordshire County Council has remained unsure over assurances about the funding of extra services amid claims that current levels fall some £8 million short of expected spending.

The council is now seeking clarification from central government on a number of spending issues, including the storage of old fridges, increased pay awards to teachers and the additional cost of providing sheltered accommodation.

New guidelines mean that county councils are responsible for the disposal of old fridges and although the Government has indicated it will fund this move, it has given no assurances as to when.

The county council has come up with an initiative involving shipping the fridges to Germany for storage. But at a cost of £30 per fridge and with up to 50,000 disposed of every year in Hertfordshire, this could cost up to £1.5 million.

Hertfordshire County Council is also expected to accommodate the four per cent increase in teachers' pay awards and the cost of adult care services proposed by the Government, which has allocated £2.2 million less than than funding figure recommended by the council.

County feels the Government has failed to recognise the extra cost of asylum seekers and benefits afforded to the elderly in sheltered accommodation.

Added to this, the council has already lost £2.7 million in revenue support grant which the Government clawed back to give to other local authorities.

Mr David Beatty, executive member for resources, said: "It is essential that the county council acts prudently and sets a budget to enable the effective management of the organisation. This has been particularly difficult this year owing to the uncertainty about exactly what funding will be made available by central government, even at this very late stage."

The proposed county council budget of £851 million for 2002 to 2003 is currently based on an increase of around 10 per cent in council tax - to be decided by the council on February 14. This could be pushed up even further if clarification is not given soon by the government, over its spending policy.

Mr Beatty has now written to the secretary of state, Stephen Byers to clarify the Government's position on funding, outlining the urgency required, so as not forced to over-tax residents in Hertfordshire.

At a county council cabinet meeting on Monday it proposed to set aside £4.5 million in a special contingency fund to cover the uncertainties. This means if the council is burdened with the extra cost, it will have a pot of money to draw upon.

Councillor Beatty said although this was a sensible decision he would much rather have seen the money spent on improving current services within the area.

He said: "While we expect the final settlement announcement this week, the list of uncertainties relating to various funding programmes continues to grow but we will continue to work to ensure that the final outcome meets the needs of all our residents."