Rating Reform (Hansard, 2 November 1983)

§ 7. Mr. Dewar
asked the Secretary of State for Scotland what plans he has to legislate for the reform of the rating system in Scotland.

§ Mr. Younger
I hope to introduce legislation before Christmas based on the proposals in the White Paper published on 31 August.

§ Mr. Dewar
Can the Secretary of State explain why the Conservative party has ratted on its long-standing commitment to abolish domestic rates? Does he really believe that the chief reason is a lack of public support for radical change? If so, I must tell him that I suspect that not one ratepayer in Scotland shares that belief.

§ Mr. Younger
During the last election we made it very plain, in the clearest print possible, that we did not propose to abolish the rating system. I hope the hon. Gentleman recognises that we made that perfectly clear to the electorate. I am sure the hon. Gentleman will know that, in response to the White Paper, extremely strong objections were raised to all the alternatives to rating. It would be rather foolish to embark on a new system that would be highly unpopular.

§ Sir Hector Monro
Does my right hon. Friend know that many professional and amateur sports clubs, racecourse and caravan owners are delighted with his enlightened approach to rating reform? Will he press on with legislation as soon as possible?

§ Mr. Younger
The anomalies in the rating, for example, of sports grounds, racecourses and caravan sites have been drawn to my attention by hon. Members on both sides of the House. We propose to put those anomalies right in the Bill. I hope that most hon. Members will agree that that is very much to be welcomed.

§ Mr. Wallace
I note the Secretary of State's retreat from the commitment to reform the domestic rating system. Does he agree that the computerisation of PAYE in Scotland makes the implementation of domestic local income tax a much more feasible option? A local income tax would enhance local democracy rather than desecrating it, as was implicit in the White Paper.

§ Mr. Younger
I have already made clear what we undertook at the last elections as opposed to the mythology expounded by Opposition Members. I appreciate that some people think that a local income tax would be a good idea, but it has been made clear to me that many people think that it would be extraordinarily dangerous to put the right to raise income tax locally, at whatever level was thought fit, into the hands of some of the councils that have irresponsible spending policies.