Councillor maintains rates localisation pressure

Is Councillor Colin Barrow, Leader of Westminster City Council alone amongst councillors in his view that councils should be given the power to retain a greater share of the business rates which they collect from local businesses? I suspect not. Having written eloquently on this subject in our current issue of Rating in Brief, the Councillor continues to present his case in public.

Most other councils have remained silent on the issue, perhaps for fear of rocking the boat at a time when public sector employment levels are in the spotlight. This, in spite of the fact that the coalition government is positively encouraging the presentation of new ideas.

There is clearly a debate to be had on the question of non-domestic rates localisation. Whether one agrees or disagrees with his views, the Councillor is doing all of us a favour by presenting an opinion on a divisive topic, and being prepared to stand by that opinion in public.

We need to hear the views of more councillors, not just those from inner city councils who many suspect stand to gain most from rates localisation, but also from councillors representing rural England.

And what about our business leaders? Around the time of Sir Michael Lyons’ ‘place-shaping’ review of local government finance in 2007, representatives of the business community queued-up to argue the case for the status quo. The place-shaping agenda was quietly shelved…… until now.

Let the debate commence!