Welcome steps in rates reform
November 21, 2022
Retailers have wlecome the moves on the Chancellor's Autumn statement to abandon the controversial downwards phasing of transitional rates relief.
Helen Dickenson at the British Retail Consortium commented: “The Government has taken an essential step towards longer term reform of the broken business rates system by announcing the scrapping of downwards phasing of transitional relief.
"This decision means that April’s bills reflect market conditions and retailers will pay only what they owe, rather than being forced to overpay their rates bill when the value of their property has already fallen. This represents the first step towards a more fundamental reform of the broken business rates system," sahe said.
The Chancellor's decision will cost about £14m over five years as the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors transition to new system. But the planned rates revaluation in April 2023 will go ahead and inflation is likely to impact those calculations.
However, the business rates multipliers are to be frozen from 2023/24 at 49.9p and 51.2p and increases caused by the increase in rateable value at the valuation will be limited to 5%, 15% and 30% depending on the size of the property.
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