Some relief for owners of empty commercial properties (From Bournemouth Echo)
When news happens text pix and video to 80360. Start your message with BE then leave a space.
Some relief for owners of empty commercial properties
7:00am Wednesday 26th November 2008 in Search By Tim Saunders
FOLLOWING the chancellor's pre-budget report, small businesses will receive rate relief on their empty commercial properties with a rateable value below £15,000 for the 2009-10 financial year.
This measure is designed to stop firms demolishing vacant buildings in an attempt to avoid paying business rates and is a reform that the Business Centre Association (BCA), has long been lobbying for from the government.
Jennifer Brooke, executive director of BCA, said: "We are deeply disappointed that it is for just one year, which is unlikely to make any significant inroads into restoring stability to the commercial property sector - but is a step in the right direction, offering a little help to the UK's small business communities.
"Critically, as the relief is a temporary measure it will do little to encourage refurbishment of existing properties and the development of new, speculative business centres.
"We urge the chancellor to undertake a comprehensive review of the rating system."
Jennifer Brooke, executive director of BCA
"We urge the chancellor to undertake a comprehensive review of the rating system, which will highlight the devastation caused by empty property rates legislation rather than reinstate this ill-timed, ill-thought out tax.
"To encourage business, irrespective of size, we need a long term solution to rating reform without the anomalies the current empty property rates legislation has created," she said.
She added: "The rates relief offered by Mr Darling will do nothing to alleviate job losses and a freeze on recruitment will bring increased unemployment figures, which will see the treasury loose out on significant revenue that would have been gained through employment taxes. Empty property rates have a far reaching and crippling effect across the economic spectrum and this can not be trivialised or ignored by the chancellor."
