I ask this question following a conversation with my sister talking about rents and council taxes. Now council tax is something that I really don't understand. I live in a place where I pay a local council tax of about 10 pounds twice yearly and that is the same for everyone. Most taxation is essentially in the form of income tax and that is what is used to fund education, infrastructure, cheap public transportation etc. Garbage disposal is funded by the purchase of cheap rubbish bags which is essentially nothing. So it horrified me to hear that my sister pays 200 pounds a month in council taxes.

So what the heck is council tax and what is it for? Where is the money going? It's not like Korea doesn't have the same things that the UK has. It has parks, roads and all the usual developed stuff. Though it clearly has a far lower single mother burden, but surely council taxes don't pay for that nonsense.

What's the deal with council tax and what are your experiences? I am truly curious about this.