The bill would provide for the next business rates revaluation to take effect from 1 April 2023. This briefing considers: the background to the bill, including recent government proposals to change the frequency of revaluation; what the bill would do; and what happened to it during its passage through the House of Commons.
Non-Domestic Rating (Lists) (No. 2) Bill: Briefing for Lords Stages (295 KB, PDF)
The Non-Domestic Rating (Lists) (No. 2) Bill has one substantive clause. It would postpone the next revaluation for business rates in England and Wales by a year to 1 April 2023.
The bill replaces a similar bill the Government introduced in the Lords earlier in the current parliamentary session, the Non-Domestic Rating (Lists) Bill. That bill would have brought the revaluation forward a year to 1 April 2021 from 1 April 2022. However, that bill has not progressed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Instead, by delaying the revaluation, the Government has said it aims to help firms affected by the pandemic.
In the UK, all non-domestic properties pay rates known as ‘business rates’ unless subject to an exemption. The administration of such rates is devolved to Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
A property’s business rates bill is determined by multiplying its ‘rateable value’, which is its estimated open market rental value on a set date, by a national ‘multiplier’. In England and Wales, the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) sets rateable values independently of government and these appear on non-domestic rating lists. The UK Government sets the national multiplier in England and the Welsh Government does so in Wales. These values are then used to calculate bills.
A process called revaluation regularly takes place to help ensure that rateable values reflect changes in the property market. This sees the rateable values of all business and other non-domestic property in England reviewed by the VOA at specified intervals. Currently, revaluation is scheduled to take place every five years from 1 April 2017 and would therefore next take place on 1 April 2022. The bill would reset the next revaluation to 1 April 2023 to take account of the coronavirus pandemic.
Non-Domestic Rating (Lists) (No. 2) Bill: Briefing for Lords Stages (295 KB, PDF)
Attendees at a United Nations (UN) summit more than 25 years ago defined an inclusive society as a “society for all”. Policy responses have been introduced in the years since, though questions remain about how progress can be measured. The Covid-19 pandemic has represented a setback towards realising the goal in many areas, but some have identified an opportunity to redouble efforts towards achieving ambitions in the pandemic’s wake.
The Botulinum Toxin and Cosmetic Fillers (Children) Bill would prohibit specific cosmetic procedures being performed on young people under the age of 18 in England, except under the direction of a registered health professional (such as doctors, dentists, pharmacists, nurses). It would also prohibit businesses from arranging or performing the procedures on under-18s. The bill has completed its stages in the House of Commons and is due to have its second reading in the Lords on 16 April 2021.
The Government’s ‘green book’ describes how major public sector investment projects are assessed. In March 2020, the Government announced a review of the approach, to improve how the green book supports strategic priorities such as its ‘levelling up’ agenda and the transition to net zero greenhouse gas emissions. The review’s conclusions were published in November 2020, followed by a revised green book in December 2020.
