The SNP-Green Government has been slammed for failing to provide hospitality businesses with any extra business rates relief after it emerged that Scottish firms have missed out on £200 million of tax savings.
Scottish Conservative analysis found that Scottish businesses were facing business rates bills more than £200 million higher than they would pay if the SNP followed the Welsh and UK governments and provided rates relief next year.
In the Scottish Parliament today (Wednesday), Glasgow MSP Annie Wells said the SNP-Green Government was ‘short-changing’ Scottish hospitality businesses by failing to provide any extra rates relief.
In Wales and England, hospitality businesses will receive 75 per cent non-domestic rates relief for the full 2023-24 year.
However, in Scotland, there is no extra rates relief on offer for hospitality premises next year from the SNP-Green Government.
Scottish Conservative MSP for Glasgow, Annie Wells, said: “Next year, hospitality businesses in Wales and to the south will receive 75 per cent business rates relief.
“But Scottish hospitality businesses are getting no extra rates relief from the SNP-Green Government.
“100,000 Scottish businesses are being short-changed.
“They’re missing out on more than £200 million of support because the SNP-Green Government treats business as an irrelevant afterthought.
“The SNP-Green Government is shafting Scottish businesses compared to their competitors in Wales and England. By not giving our economy the support it deserves, the SNP and Greens could put jobs at risk and damage Scotland’s recovery.”
Notes
The costings for the ‘over £200 million’ figure are as follows:
The Scottish Fiscal Commission have costed business rates relief at £33 million for this year’s 50% relief for three months in this financial year.
Therefore, 75% relief for the whole year would have been £198 million in 2022-23 and inflating this to 2023-24 would be approximately £204 million. (SFC, Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts, December 2022, p109, link).