Business Rates Revaluation and Reliefs

1. Business Rates Revaluation and Reliefs Mark Maidment Director of Resources and Deputy Chief Executive Graham Russell Assistant Director of Resources (Revenues)

2. Background(1) • Rates charged on businesses based on Rateable Value (RV), assessed by Valuation Office Agency, and multiplier set by Government • RVs can change due to appeals etc but Government periodically revalues all properties in the country

3. Background(2) 2017 Revaluation • For Richmond the average increase in RV was 14.4% • Big variations depending on type of property: • Shops 5.3% • Offices 10.8% • Factories / workshops 41.4% • Universities 79.7% • Cemeteries 89.4%

4. Changes w.e.f. 1st April 2017

5. Transitional Relief • If your bill is increasing the TR scheme limits the increase

6. Transitional Relief • If your bill is decreasing the TR limits the reduction

7. Further measures • In his Spring Budget, the Chancellor announced a package of 3 further measures intended to mitigate the impact of the revaluation: • Supporting Small Businesses • New Business Rate Relief Scheme for Pubs • New Discretionary Relief Scheme REMEMBER SCHEMES NOT CONFIRMED…….

8. Supporting Small Businesses • Relief for businesses facing the loss of some, or all, of their Small Business Rate relief • Increase in bill is limited to the greater of £600 or the matching cap on increases for small properties in the TR scheme • We estimate that only 35 businesses will be affected in Richmond

9. Support for Pubs • Pubs with a RV of less than £100k may receive a discount of £1,000 on their bill • Government intends to publish a consultation on the operation of the scheme shortly

10. Local Discretionary Relief Scheme • Government has allocated £330m nationally. Richmond gets £1.1m for the scheme over 3 years (£0.67m yr1, £0.32m yr2, £0.13m yr3) …….note steep reductions after yr1 • Intended to support • ratepayers or localities that face the most significant increases in bills; and • ratepayers occupying lower value properties

11. Possible criteria • Property has suffered an increase in bill because of the revaluation • RV is between £15,000 and £200,000 • Business is not part of a chain (including franchises) • You have no more than 2 properties anywhere in the UK • Receiving the relief would not mean that you breach State Aid rules • The business does not fall in any of the following categories: • Financial Services (Banks, building societies, cash points, bureau de change, payday lender, betting shops, pawn brokers) • Medical services • Sex establishment • Currently receiving Mandatory Charitable Relief • Funded by Central Government or agency thereof

12. Possible criteria (locality) • Number of empty units • Number of bankruptcies / business failures • Links to identified areas of uplift / improvement ....but data not straight forward, consistent or necessarily related to rate increases…..

13. Possible payment methods • Flat rate reduction for any business suffering an increase in its bill subject to a maximum equivalent to the increase in bill • As above but with no maximum • Flat rate reduction for any business in receipt of TR subject to a maximum reduction equivalent to the increase in bill • As above but with no maximum • Reduction pro rata to TR received • Reduction pro rata to increase in bill after TR • Each method affects businesses differently REMEMBER – STILL ONLY PROPOSED SCHEME

14. Questions / Comments / Discussion