Millions of people face council tax hikes over normal thresholds after the government allowed six areas to boost rates above the usual 5%.

More than two million people will be hit by increases of between 5 and 10%.

Windsor and Maidenhead Council wanted to increase council tax by 25% but the plan was blocked – instead it will go up by 9%.

Newham Council will go up by the same amount, while Bradford Council will put up taxes by 10% and Birmingham, Somerset and Trafford councils will all put up rates by 7.5%.

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Speaking to Sky News’ Kay Burley, health and social care minister Karin Smyth defended the above normal increases – saying “many more councils” asked for permission to hike taxes, but were refused.

She said the ones given the nod “are particularly desperate” and need the money to keep “basic services running”.

The Labour MP was quick to blame the Conservatives, saying local government was left in a “really, really dark state” by the previous government.

Deputy prime minister Angela Rayner – who is also the secretary of state for local government – confirmed the move on Monday.

She said the average council tax increase across the country would not surpass last year’s total of 5.1%.

She also said more than £69bn in central funding would be made available to regional administrators, a rise of 6.8% compared to the 2024-25 period. Close to £4bn has also been put aside to help councils with social care.

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The Conservatives accused Labour of “pushing the burden on to taxpayers after they promised to freeze council tax”.

Shadow communities secretary Kevin Hollinrake said: “Their Local Government Finance Settlement will mean that councils will have to raise council tax to accommodate Labour’s jobs tax.

“This means that local people will pay more for less when it comes to local services, especially in rural areas which are losing the Rural Services Delivery Grant that Labour have abolished.

“The Labour Party have made false promises to local people, promising to freeze council tax while many councils will now have to raise it due to Labour’s political choice to raise council tax.”

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The County Councils Network, which represents 37 administrations, said they are facing pressure from the government’s decisions to increase national insurance contributions for employers, and increases to minimum wage.

Barry Lewis, the network’s finance spokesperson said: “More than four in five CCN members say they are in a worse position than before the autumn budget and this finance settlement, and one-third say their service reductions next year will now be severe.

“Considering there is very little fat left to cut from many of these services already, a further reduction will have a material impact on our residents.”

Ms Rayner confirmed allocations worth £502m to assist councils with the impact of increases to employer national insurance contributions.

What if Britain has, almost entirely by accident, navigated itself into about the best possible position it could be in, as Donald Trump embarks on a trade war with nearly all his economic partners?

I realise this might, at first, sound a little odd. After all, when the world is facing economically-destructive measures (blanket tariffs are invariably value-destructive, in the short run at least) it’s hard to see much in the way of victories. Moreover, when it comes to Donald Trump, no one, including his own cabinet and staff, can quite predict what will happen next. Consider the roller-coaster over tariffs in the past few days alone.

Even so, the fact remains that of all the countries and regions in the world, Britain seems much less likely than most to face the kind of peremptory tariffs the president is so keen on.

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To see why, it helps to remember that the one thing Mr Trump hates above all else is trade deficits – when you import more goods (and it seems to be goods he mostly cares about) from another country than you send there in return.

America has an enormous trade deficit with China and with Mexico too, not to mention a smaller but not insubstantial deficit with Canada. When the president talks about the reasons for his tariffs he sometimes mentions illegal fentanyl imports, but, even more often, he references the size of the trade deficits. He wants America to make more stuff domestically and suck in less stuff from overseas.

We could have a long conversation (and I suspect we probably will have a long conversation in the coming months) about the extent to which deficits are, per se, a bad thing. But in the short run let’s focus on the UK and its strengths in this game.

First, since the UK is no longer part of the European Union, it will not automatically face the same trade terms as its neighbours on the continent. If the US imposes tariffs on the EU, Britain will not necessarily face them.

Second, if there is one country in the world with even bigger trade deficits than the US, it’s Britain. This country has deindustrialised even quicker than America, with the upshot that unlike the EU or Canada or Mexico, Britain is one of the few countries in the world to import more goods from America than America imports from it.

Footnote: that last point actually depends on whose numbers you’re looking at. Look at America’s figures and it has a trade surplus with the UK. Look at Britain’s figures and America has a trade deficit with us. But either way, both are very small. The numbers are essentially balanced.

Third, in recent months, the new Labour government has begun to improve its relationship with China. Chancellor Rachel Reeves went on a financial diplomacy mission to Beijing last month. And unlike nearly every other industrialised country in the developed world, Britain has not imposed tariffs on imports of Chinese electric vehicles.

Many diplomats have raised their eyebrows about this, but in the event that America wanted to do a deal with Britain, this is precisely the kind of thing the government could quickly reverse: “Oh alright then – in return for this trade deal, we’re willing to impose those tariffs on China – the ones everyone else has already introduced.”

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The funny thing about these three strengths is that, first off, up until recently many would have seen each of them – Brexit, our deindustrialisation and our cosying up to China – as weaknesses rather than strengths. They certainly weren’t part of any grand strategic plan.

Even so, the UK nonetheless finds itself in an unexpectedly propitious position when it comes to negotiating with the US. It has a better chance than most nations to act as a diplomatic bridge between America and Europe. Its chances of sealing that much-vaunted trade deal with the US have improved rather than deteriorated. Indeed, I’m told that leading members of the administration believe a trade deal with the UK could be sealed in a matter of months.

Whether that actually eventuates remains to be seen. After all, if there’s one thing you can’t predict when it comes to Donald Trump it’s, well, anything.

Sir Jim Ratcliffe is hoisting a ‘for sale’ sign over the business he set up during the COVID-19 crisis to distribute hand sanitisers to medical professionals and consumers.

Sky News has learnt that the billionaire petrochemicals tycoon has instructed advisers to launch an auction of Ineos Hygienics, which was created during the pandemic, establishing six factories within ten days to address a global shortage of sanitising products.

City sources said on Tuesday that Ineos was working with Interpath, the advisory firm, on the sale.

The financial performance of Ineos Hygienics was unclear, although insiders said it was being run as a conventional sale process, rather than on a distressed basis.

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Ineos has sought to promote the sanitisers arm by linking it to its portfolio of sporting properties, which includes a stake in the Mercedes Formula One team and a partnership with the New Zealand All Blacks.

In 2021, the conglomerate struck distribution deals to sell its products through Sainsbury’s supermarkets and Ocado, the online grocer.

The proposed sale marks a comparatively rare disposal for the acquisitive Monaco-based billionaire.

Ineos did not respond to a number of emailed requests to its media relations department but says on its website: “As Europe’s largest producer of high-purity synthetic ethanol, INEOS was in a unique position to respond to the global shortage of hand sanitiser when the pandemic struck in March 2020.

“Manoeuvring quickly to establish six new factories across the UK, US and Europe in just ten days, the company has distributed millions of bottles of hospital grade hand sanitiser to thousands of NHS, medical institutions and front-line health care workers around the world, for free.

“INEOS Hygienics is the official supplier of hand sanitation products to international sporting teams including Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team, Tottenham Hotspur FC, INEOS Grenadiers and INEOS TEAM UK, helping to ensure that teams can continue to compete safely and with confidence.”

Interpath’s role in managing the sale of Ineos Hygienics is unsurprising given its increasingly close ties to Sir Jim.

The consulting firm was drafted in by the tycoon after he acquired a large minority stake in Manchester United Football Club, a deal which completed last year.

Interpath has advised on a wide range of cost-cutting measures at the Premier League club, some of which have been adopted with controversial vigour.

Hundreds of jobs have been lost, with further reductions to its workforce regarded as inevitable.

Away from Interpath’s work with the Red Devils, which has now concluded, Sir Jim has also moved to slash costs in areas of the club which were previously regarded as untouchable.

These include funding provided to an association of former players and Manchester United’s charitable foundation, which Sky News reported in late December was braced for substantial cuts in contributions from the club.

Sir Jim’s conglomerate spans a vast range of businesses in areas such as petrochemicals, energy trading and shipping.

It is also building a 4×4 vehicle called the Ineos Grenadier and owns the fashion brand Belstaff.

In sport, he has played a pivotal role in funding Britain’s recent challenges for the Americas Cup, although his partnership with Sir Ben Ainslie is reported to be descending into legal acrimony.

Ineos also now has a major presence in cycling.