Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate she has made of the gross increase in business rate receipts from the 2026-27 business rate multiplier surcharge on hereditaments above £500,000 Rateable Value.

To deliver our manifesto pledge, from 2026-27, the Government intends to protect the high street by introducing permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with Rateable Values below £500,000. This permanent tax cut will ensure that RHL properties benefit from much-needed certainty and support.

This tax cut must be sustainably funded, and so the Government intends to introduce a higher rate on the most valuable properties on 2026-27 - those with Rateable Values of £500,000 and above. These represent less than one per cent of all properties, but capture the majority of large distribution warehouses, including those used by online giants.

The exact rates for any new business rate multipliers will be set at Budget 2025 so that the Government can take into account the revaluation outcomes as well as the economic and fiscal context.