Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps she is taking to ensure the prosperity of rural and less economically productive areas where significant business rate-generating sites are transferred to larger urban authorities.

The Government is committed to delivering good growth in every postcode. That includes creating strong growth engines for all areas, including cities, towns, rural and coastal areas.

The 2026-27 Local Government Finance Settlement strengthened the link between funding allocations and local need, helping to ensure that all areas, including rural communities, have access to sustainable funding regardless of the location of major business rate-generating sites.

The share of business rates retained by the sector is periodically redistributed on the basis of need to spend and an up-to-date assessment of how much business rates are raised within each authority. Within these periods, a portion of business rates growth can also be retained locally. It will be up to local leaders to decide how to spend funding from business rates within a local authority boundary.