Cross party support for new ratesrelief plan

The new Bill, which comes into operation in April, gives businesses with a Rateable Value of £10,000 or less a 20% rebate. If a business goes into premises which have been vacant for 12 months a rebate of 50% rates relief will be applied for one year.

The Chairman of Lisburn City Centre Management, DUP Alderman Allan Ewart, said it was “great news for the hard pressed small business community.

“In order to brighten up an empty shop a window display will be allowed and no additional liability as long as it is not promoting retail shopping. In order to pay for these rates reliefs large stores with a Rateable value of £500,000 or more will pay 15% extra rates.”

He continued: “I commend Minister Sammy Wilson for bringing forward this legislation which took on board many of the issues brought forward by businesses during the consultation period.

“I trust these measures will be of benefit to the small businesses and help in some way to get them through these difficult trading periods,” concluded Mr Ewart.

Ulster Unionist Councillor Ronnie Crawford also welcomed the move.

Mr Crawford, who has been calling for rates relief for local businesses, said: “I warmly welcome the Finance Minister’s proposal to allow a 50% reduction for businesses opening shops which have been closed for sometime.

“I have been advocating such a course for sometime now and this should benefit areas such as the Market Square.”

The chairman of the Council’s Corporate Service Committee, Alliance Councillor Stephen Martin, added: “This news highlights the need for flexibility within the operation of our rates system in order to promote small and medium sized businesses which are crucial to Lisburn’s economy.

“We cannot just batten down the hatches and hope to ride out the storm. We need to be not just talking but thinking our way around these issues in partnership with local businesses, educationalists and domestic ratepayers to ensure that we are not forever playing catch up, but can reposition ourselves to excel in tomorrow’s marketplace.”