§ Mr. Iremongerasked the Minister of Housing and Local Government and Minister for Welsh Affairs whether he will make a further statement about the rating of plant and machinery.
§ Mr. H. BrookeI have now been able to consider the difficult issues which arise upon the Report of the Ritson Committee; and I have it in mind to make a new Order operative from 1st April next.
234WThe new Order being prepared is on the general lines of the revised statement prepared by the Ritson Committee and published as Appendix I to its Report, but with the omission of the item "main pipelines" and with drafting amendments which subsequent representations have shown to be desirable.
I know that industrialists attach importance to the majority recommendations of the Committee which would exclude certain types of plant and machinery from the order; but I am advised that under the existing statutory provisions such a limitation would not be lawful. Seeing that the existing Order dates from 1927 and new types of plant and machinery developed since that date escape their share of rates until listed, and in the light of the various other improvements which the committee proposed, I do not think it would be right to defer longer than necessary the making of a new Order. But when an opportunity of legislation occurs I shall be disposed to consider favourably amendments of the law which would make possible a limitation to exclude small movable plant and machinery so that a satisfactory and effective definition on these lines could be sought, and would carry into effect also the recommendation in paragraph 51 of the Report.