Decision details

In a Ministerial Statement on 27^th January, the Government announced changes to rates relief to be delivered under the Council’s discretionary powers. These were:

-       An amendment to the Retail Discount, increasing the relief amount from 1/3 to 50%, and extending the scheme to include cinemas and live music venues

-       The re-instatement of a discount for pubs of £1,000 pa

-       An extension to the Local Newspaper discount for a further five years.

Further small amendments are to the rest of the policy are also required to ensure accuracy and consistency. Details of all the changes required can be found in the accompanying report.

To adopt the updated version of the Discretionary Business Rate Relief Policy, shown in Appendix B.

The adoption of a formal policy ensures that billing and collection is carried out in accordance with the law and government requirements. It will benefit and support businesses who meet the criteria, whilst minimising the risk of legal challenge.

None.