Issue - meetings

As detailed in the recommendation.

The Head of Finance provided details of two new Welsh Government (WG) business rate schemes, ‘Open for Business’ and ‘New Developments’ which were designed to bring long-term empty properties back into use and stimulate construction and development in Wales.

The schemes were in response to the recommendations from the Business Rates Task and Finish Group that examined how the business rates system in Wales could be used to encourage economic development.

The first scheme, ‘Open for Business’, was focused on bringing long term unoccupied retail properties back into use and especially supporting new businesses in the first year of trading.  It would provide 50% rate relief for all eligible retail properties for up to 12 months from the date of occupation.  The retail properties would have had to have been unoccupied for a continuous period of 12 months or more and have a rateable value of no more than £45,000.

The second scheme, ‘New Developments’, was designed to incentivise new and speculative developments in a bid which could boost construction in Wales and which would exempt from business rates all newly built but vacant commercial property, completed on or after 1 October 2013 and before 1 October 2016 for the first 18 months following completion.

In response to a question, the Head of Finance explained that 560 empty properties had been identified and a letter would be sent to each the following day about the ‘Open for Business’ scheme.  On the ‘New Developments’ scheme, Revenues and Benefits were working with Economic Development to seek to maximise the availability of information of those who could potentially benefit from it.

RESOLVED:

That the implementation of both the ‘Open for Business’ scheme and ‘New Developments’ scheme be supported by adopting the scheme resolution as set out in Appendix 1 to the report.