Of the four councils who have complained to the chancellor, three are Conservative-controlled and Richmond is run by the Liberal Democrats.
Gareth Roberts, leader of Richmond Council, said the government “is seeing Richmond residents as cash cows that they can milk to fix funding gaps elsewhere in the country, irrespective of whether they can afford to pay this new tax”.
Elizabeth Campbell, leader of Kensington and Chelsea Council, said: “This is not a tax carefully targeted at the very wealthy.
“It lacks nuance and will hit pensioners, families and long-standing residents whose homes have risen in value while their incomes have not.”
They also said it should not be called a “council tax surcharge”, because none of the money raised would remain in the boroughs or support local services.
Paul Swaddle, leader of Westminster City Council, said high property values “do not always translate into high household incomes, and it risks creating unfair outcomes for residents whose property value does not reflect their ability to pay”.
And Robert Morritt, leader of Wandsworth Council, said they “won’t get to keep a single extra penny raised – this is an unfair attack on well-run councils like ours, with Wandsworth residents hammered to pay for those elsewhere”.
The borough leaders said their residents would be paying £270m in “mansion tax”.
