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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
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| Scottish business rates system findings to be made public | Scottish business rates system findings to be made public |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| A review of Scottish business rates is due to be published later by former RBS chairman Ken Barclay. | |
| The system has faced heavy criticism, particularly from hospitality sector. | |
| Pub and hotel owners said a revaluation exercise of non-domestic rates would have left some facing a 400% increase in bills. | Pub and hotel owners said a revaluation exercise of non-domestic rates would have left some facing a 400% increase in bills. |
| Scotland's finance secretary Derek Mackay quelled concerns earlier this year by capping rises for thousands of businesses. | |
| Why are business rates causing concern? | Why are business rates causing concern? |
| Business rates - what do they pay? | Business rates - what do they pay? |
| First Minister Nicola Sturgeon announced the review of the levy to "better support growth and respond to wider economic conditions and changing markets". | |
| Mr Barclay, who left RBS in 2015 after almost 40 years with the bank, was asked to take into account "three guiding principles"; | Mr Barclay, who left RBS in 2015 after almost 40 years with the bank, was asked to take into account "three guiding principles"; |
| The revaluation of business premises, which was due to be applied in April this year, sparked controversy earlier in the year. | |
| The tourism industry was particularly vocal along with entrepreneurs in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, who said the oil sector slump had not been taken into account. | The tourism industry was particularly vocal along with entrepreneurs in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, who said the oil sector slump had not been taken into account. |
| Similar criticisms had been made in other parts of the UK, where revaluations were also being applied. | Similar criticisms had been made in other parts of the UK, where revaluations were also being applied. |
| After Mr Barclay's appointment the Scottish Retail Consortium said the review heralded a "great opportunity to recast business rates for the decades ahead" and ensure a reformed system would be "modern, sustainable and competitive". | After Mr Barclay's appointment the Scottish Retail Consortium said the review heralded a "great opportunity to recast business rates for the decades ahead" and ensure a reformed system would be "modern, sustainable and competitive". |
| What was the issue with revaluations? | |
| By Douglas Fraser, BBC Scotland business and economy editor | |
| Earlier this year, the revaluation - based on notional rental values for commercial property in 2015 - led to sharp increases for some. | |
| Bills are based on a "poundage" of roughly 50p, which means businesses pay around half the annual rental value in business rates. However, there are significant exemptions and reliefs, including charities, places of worship and many sports facilities. | |
| The five-year revaluation cycle had been delayed, so this year's changes reflected a gap of seven years from 2008. | |
| Coming out of deep recession, there had been substantial shifts in property values for different types of firm in different parts of the country. | |
| In north-east Scotland, these failed to reflect the regional economic downturn that accompanied the oil price fall between 2015 and 2017. | |
| Read more from Douglas |