Healey secures tax boost to revive deprived areas

Published	26 February 2008

Measures designed to breathe new life into deprived areas came a step closer today, as Local Government Minister John Healey laid regulations in Parliament to enable the introduction of reforms to empty property rates on April 1.

Announced in the 2007 Budget, empty property rates are designed to revitalise run-down communities and ensure the effective and efficient use of buildings.

The reforms:

increase the empty property rate from 50 per cent to 100 per cent of the basic occupied business rate, to encourage owners to re-let, re-develop or sell their properties to reduce the need for new development on Greenfield sites
provide a new power to reduce the empty property rate, to enable ministers to respond to changing conditions in the property market
allow for measures to be implemented to tackle deliberate dereliction by ensuring those who deliberately render their property beyond economic repair continue to be liable for empty property rates
extend the exemption from empty property rates to companies in administration, as well as those in liquidation.

Local Government Minister John Healey said:

"Empty business premises are a blot on the landscape for our most deprived communities, giving a signal to both residents and potential investors to move onto the next town.

"These changes to empty property rates will encourage owners to keep their premises in use, revitalising deprived areas as new businesses move in bringing much-needed employment opportunities, and making these towns and cities better places in which to live."