Dismay over EPR legislation (From Business in Dorset)

Dismay over EPR legislation

4:07pm Thursday 1st May 2008

• Print
• Email
• Share

Open letter to the Chancellor, Rt Hon Alistair Darling MP, Dear Chancellor, The enactment of the new empty property rates (EPR) legislation poses one of the most significant threats to the property industry in recent times.

We the undersigned wish to express our anger and dismay at this new EPR legislation for which there has been no meaningful consultation with the property industry.

The government has failed to realise that this new legislation will severely limit the scale of develop-ment undertaken by the property industry thereby stifling regeneration.

This will both reduce the amount of space available and increase rental levels, not just for small businesses - who at the start of 2006 provided 47 per cent of the UK's private sector employment - but for the entire UK business community. As is all too often the case, this will predominantly affect commerce in regions where regeneration is most needed.

The government claims that the new legislation will encourage landlords to let space. Landlords rarely, if ever deliberately leave their properties empty. If properties are empty then this is due to a lack of demand for the type of premises on offer. This legislation pays no regard to the length of time it takes to let commercial property nor have any of the artificial delays, such as the late introduction of Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) (due in no small part to public sector inefficiencies), been taken into consideration.

The government did not consult industry experts adequately before introducing this new legislation - consequently this is one issue on which the whole of the property industry is united.

It is not just the private sector that will be affected. The new empty property rates legislation will result in additional costs for local authority run business centres and will directly increase their expenditure in creating new centres as a result of market failure brought about by this tax. These extra costs can only be met by the public purse.

It would be naïve to believe that the new legislation will not have an adverse impact on business growth rates in the economy and on UK competitiveness - someth-ing we can ill-afford in the current economic climate.

The empty property rates legislation was given no mention in your Budget speech, yet there is flexibility available to reduce the level at which empty rates are charged. We urge the government to give this urgent consideration before empty property rates legislation inflicts further serious damage on the property development industry.

Jennifer Brooke, bca Executive Director,

Tom Stokes, bca Chair Elect ECC London City, 3 Bunhill Row, London EC1Y 8YZ

Gareth Lewis, BPF Director-Finance and Investments 7th Floor, 1 Warwick Row, London SW1E 5ER

Julian Lyon, Chair, CBI Property Group Centre Point, 103 New Oxford Street, London, WC1A 1DU

Blake Penfold, Chair - RICS Rating & Local Taxation Policy Panel

Nadia Nath-Varma, RICS Policy Officer, 12 Great George Street, Parliament Square, London SW1P 3AD

Mark Higgins, RSA Vice President Elect, Clarges House, 6-12 Clarges Street, London W1J 8HB Business Centre Association - bca, British Property Federation - BPF, Confederation of British Industry - CBI Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors - RICS, Rating Surveyors' Association - RSA

• Print
• Email
• Share