Local government has called for a ‘fundamental review of council tax' in a long-awaited report.

The report by senior officers' group Solace, the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy and Local Government Association (LGA) argued referendum limits should be abolished and authorities should be given the powers to vary all council tax discounts.

It is understood that there have been a series of disagreements over which ideas to include in the report, which was originally due to be launched at the LGA's annual conference in July in time to influence the incoming Government.

A source said the paper had been expected to be launched at the LGA's delayed conference in October and was then rescheduled to last month after ‘some political back and forth'. 

There are fears that the report has come too late to influence the thinking of the Government, which last week said it had ‘no plans to reform the council tax system'.

The report called for a ‘new urgency' to be added to the search for new local tax streams such as sales levies, tourist levies, payroll taxes and land value taxes.