Shrewsbury’s civic leaders have expressed their disappointment after the Government rejected calls for town and parish councils to be able to retain business rates in the same way as larger authorities.
Councillor Alan Mosley, leader of Shrewsbury Town Council, and Councillor Jon Tandy, the town’s Mayor, said the decision was in ‘direct opposition’ to the Government’s vision for localism.
NALC, the National Association for Local Councils, called on the Coalition Government to make changes to the current system to allow town and parish councils to retain a proportion of the business rate.
The plea comes after reforms to local government funding which allowed principal councils to retain 50 per cent of the business rate growth in their area.
NALC wants to see part of this funding filtered down to town and parish councils which it says are taking on more and more responsibility for service delivery at a grass roots level.
Councillor Mosley, leader of Shrewsbury Town Council said: “We were extremely disappointed to hear that there will be no change to the way local councils are funded. Many businesses assume that part of their business rate goes to their local parish or town council, the tier of local government they most readily identify with. However, local councils have not benefitted from a share of business rate since 1990. “
The Government’s reluctance to look at more imaginative ways of funding the councils closest to the communities we all serve is in direct opposition to the localism vision. Many councils like Shrewsbury are showing greater initiatives to promote their towns and yet they will never tap into any of the business rate that could be generated.”
Councillor Tandy added: “Town and parish councils up and down the country are stepping up to the plate to play their part in achieving the Government’s localism vision. Shrewsbury Town Council, which is one of the largest town councils in the country, already does a great deal to support the local economy, from the development of the BID, to supporting tourism and maintaining Shrewsbury’s reputation as a town of flowers – all of which is funded via the precept or the fees/charges we generate from our assets. NALC’s call that councils like Shrewsbury should be able to retain an element of the business rate would help us deliver even more and I am extremely disappointed that the Government has not given the proposals greater consideration.”
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