§ SIR HENRY FOWLER (Wolverhampton, E.)I beg to ask the President of the Local Government Board, what is the estimate of the annual value, the rateable value, and the acreage of the agricultural land to which the relief proposed to be given by the Agricultural Land Rating Bill extends?
§ THE PRESIDENT OF THE LOCAL GOVERNMENT BOARD (Mr. HENRY CHAPLIN,) Lincolnshire, SleafordIt is estimated that the rateable value of the agricultural land to which the Bill extends is £26,250,000. I presume that the annual value to which the right hon. Member alludes is the annual value referred to in Clause 9 of the Bill. I have not the same material for making an estimate of the annual value as I have in the case of rateable value, but I have no reason to suppose that there is any great difference between the annual value and the rateable value of agricultural land. The acreage of the land is estimated at 32,745,610, without including allotments and other holdings— the area of which does not exceed one acre—as to which no statistics are available.
§ MR. J. DILLON (Mayo, E.)asked, whether the right hon. Gentleman would give similar information in respect to Scotland and Ireland?
§ MR. CHAPLINI shall be happy to do so after notice.
§ SIR HENRY FOWLERThe right hon. Gentleman has said that there is little difference between the annual value and the rateable value. Is it not a fact that a large reduction is always made on the annual value before the rateable value is arrived at?
§ MR. CHAPLINI shall be very glad to give the right hon. Gentleman any further information that I can.