Town leaders in Eastbourne will call for council tax to be axed once and for all after bills rocketed.

Members of the ruling Lib Dem party on Eastbourne Borough Council hope to banish the tax, brought in by John Major in 1993.

They want to replace it with a system they claim would be fairer on the poor and provide more cash for the council for services.

In a motion to be presented at a full council meeting tomorrow, council leader Beryl Healy will propose three alternatives to the controversial levy.

She will suggest the Government replaces the tax with a fair system, change the balance of funding so a shortfall in the Government grant does not mean higher tax bills for residents and provide future settlements which guarantee a good standard of services for people in Eastbourne.

Coun Healy said: "This is part of our national campaign to raise awareness of the unfairness of the council tax and the fact we would like to see it scrapped.

"Something has to happen because at the moment people are paying large amounts of their income on council tax."

Instead of the present system the Eastbourne Lib Dems would like to see an income tax introduced, based closely on individual households' earning powers and set locally.

Eastbourne residents were furious this year when Eastbourne Borough Council announced a rise of just over 38 per cent for its element of the council tax.

This increase alone meant an extra £50 on bills for residents living in a Band D property.

On top of this figure a rise in the county council and police authority's elements meant residents living in a Band D property now have to pay £1,209.49 annually, compared with last year's bill of £978.67.

Eastbourne Borough Council leaders blamed the county council for its increase, who in turn blamed central Government.

But borough council bosses also admitted almost all their rise could be attributed to the introduction of a recycling scheme.

The motion, calling for the end to council tax, will be discussed at the full council meeting to held at Eastbourne town hall tomorrow at 6pm.

The meeting is open to the public.