§ Mr. BeithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will place in the Library a copy of the guidance which has been issued to valuation officers on the interpretation of Statutory Instrument 474/91; and whether this guidance makes reference to the presence of en suite bathrooms or of tea-making facilities as relevant to assessing whether a householder is excluded from the business rate concession.
§ Mr. MaplesI have been asked to reply.
It is not our practice to disclose instructions which are issued for the confidential guidance of staff, but when deciding whether a household is to be excluded from non-domestic rating valuation officers will have regard to all the facilities provided and the intensity of business use. No particular facility will be considered in isolation, but only in relation to all the circumstances of the case.