Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make it her policy to ensure the Valuation Office Agency's online calculator on gov.uk for the affect of the 2026 revaluation includes the GLA Crossrail supplement on hereditaments in London.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The estimator tool has been taken down as standard practice ahead of billing authorities issuing bills, to reduce confusion for customers. Businesses can still check their rateable value via the Valuation Office Agency’s online service and should contact their local council with any questions about their bill.
On 27 January, it was announced that every pub and live music venue will get 15% off its new business rates bill on top of the support announced at Budget and then bills will be frozen in real terms for a further two years.
For those businesses benefiting from the new announcement, there is a specific calculator available to help them understand the impact on bills next year.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an estimate of the average increase in the business rates liability of retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) businesses in London from the Crossrail GLA supplement as a consequence of RHL relief no longer applying to the supplement from 2026-27.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
Decisions around the determination and application of local Business Rates Supplement are for the Greater London Authority, who must ensure they follow the requirements set out in the Business Rates Supplement Act 2009 and the policies set out in their final prospectus.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential compound impact on the hotels sector of (a) the overnight visitor levy and (b) increases in business rates in the 2026 Business Rates valuation.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
The Government is also introducing permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties, while ensuring that warehouses used by online giants will pay more. The new RHL tax rates replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since Covid.
Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.
The precise design and scope of the power for Mayors to introduce a visitor levy is still under development. Mayors will decide whether to introduce a levy and, if so, consult on specific proposals. We expect Mayors to engage constructively with businesses and their communities to hear their concerns. This will inform their decisions regarding whether and how a levy will be applied and how any revenue is spent. Giving this power to local leaders who best understand their region enables them to tailor it to growing their local economies.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the answer of 18 November 2025, to Question 87790, on Business Rates: Valuation, what was the increase in aggregate Rateable Values for the serviced office sector as a result of the new valuation methodology.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent estimate she has made of gross business rate receipts in England in (a) 2024-25, (b) 2025-26, (c) 2026-27, (d) 2027-28 and (e) 2028-29.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government publishes data on the rates collected by councils in England. This data can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-non-domestic-rates-collected-by-councils-in-england-forecast-2025-to-2026
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, which public sector bodies will be compensated for increases to their business rates.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties.
The Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion, including to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down next year. This also means most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
Departments’ budgets were set at Spending Review 2025. Any spending pressures are expected to be managed within those settlements.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 4 December 2025, to Question 95866, on Business Rates, how many and what proportion of hereditaments have seen their bills (a) increase, (b) remain the same and (c) fall following the revaluation and revised multipliers in England.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.
At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties.
To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down next year. Government support also means that most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.
The new, permanently lower tax rates for Retail, Hospitality and Leisure (RHL) replace the temporary RHL relief that has been winding down since COVID. Unlike RHL relief, the new rates are permanent, giving businesses certainty and stability, and there will be no cap, meaning all qualifying properties on high streets across England will benefit.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government publishes data on the number of properties receiving business rates relief. This data can be found at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/national-non-domestic-rates-collected-by-councils-in-england-forecast-2025-to-2026
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether HM Treasury collates data on central government spending on translation and interpretation into foreign languages for those residing in the United Kingdom.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Government spending on translation and interpretation services for British residents exists across many departments. Spending on such services typically falls below the HM Treasury approval and disclosure threshold, as defined by a department’s Delegated Authority Limit. HM Treasury therefore does not collect or receive data at the requested level of granularity.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what external contractors is the Valuation Office Agency using to support its valuation work on (a) a council tax revaluation in Wales and (b) the council tax surcharge in England.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) is not using external contractors to perform its valuation work on the 2028 Council Tax revaluation in Wales.
The approach to the High Value Council Tax Surcharge is being developed and more details will be set out in due course, alongside the Government's consultation.
Asked by: James Cleverly (Conservative - Braintree)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will place in the Library a copy of the Equality Impact Assessment produced by the Valuation Office Agency for the 2026 business rates revaluation.
Answered by Dan Tomlinson - Exchequer Secretary (HM Treasury)
We do not routinely release equality assessments.