Local Government Finance (Wales) Bill

A Welsh Government Bill, introduced by Rebecca Evans MS, Minister for Finance and Local Government. The Business Committee has referred the Bill to the Local Government and Housing Committee.

Following the appointment of the First Minister on 20 March, and appointment of the new Cabinet, Rebecca Evans MS, Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Constitution & Cabinet Office was authorised as Member in Charge of the Bill by the First Minister in accordance with Standing Order 24.4(ii).

About the Bill

The Bill proposes in respect of the non-domestic rates system:

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>>>increasing the frequency of revaluations to three-yearly, and a power for the Welsh Ministers to amend the revaluation year and interval between revaluation years through regulations;

>>>conferring regulation-making powers on the Welsh Ministers to confer, vary or withdraw reliefs;

>>>strengthening the eligibility conditions for charitable relief for unoccupied hereditaments;

>>>expanding the definition of a new building for the purpose of the serving of completion notices by local authorities;

>>>removing a timing restriction on the awarding and varying of discretionary relief by local authorities;

>>>conferring regulation-making powers on the Welsh Ministers to confer, vary or withdraw exemptions;

>>>conferring a regulation-making power on the Welsh Ministers to set differential multipliers based on the description, rateable value or location of a hereditament on the local list, or the rateable value of a hereditament on the central list;

>>>placing a duty on ratepayers to provide certain types of information to the Valuation Office Agency, and making provision for the associated compliance regime; and

>>>making provision about counteracting advantages arising from artificial avoidance arrangements.

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And in respect of the council tax system the Bill proposes:

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>>>providing flexibility for the reference point for 100% in the banding structure to be changed to a different band or a different description of a band;

>>>conferring powers on the Welsh Ministers to make regulations in respect of discounts and persons to be disregarded;

>>>placing a duty on the Welsh Ministers to make a single national Council Tax Reduction Scheme through regulations and enabling the Welsh Ministers to issue guidance to local authorities about the way the scheme should be applied;

>>>establishing a five-yearly cycle of revaluations, and a power for the Welsh Ministers to amend the revaluation year and interval between revaluations, as well as to amend the date of draft list publication via order; and

>>>replacing the current requirement to publish information in newspapers with a requirement to publish a notice of the council tax charges on the local authority’s website and put suitable alternative arrangements in place to ensure that such information is accessible to citizens who have difficulty accessing online facilities.

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Further detail about the Bill can be found in its accompanying Explanatory Memorandum.

Local Government Finance (Wales) Bill, as introduced (PDF 348KB)

Explanatory Memorandum (PDF 1.9MB)

Current Stage

BillStage2

The Bill is currently at Stage 2. An explanation of the various stages of Senedd Bills is available in the Guide to the Stages of Public Bills and Acts.

Record of Passage in the Welsh Parliament

The following table sets out the dates for each stage of the Bill’s passage through the Senedd.

¬¬¬Stage 2 Committee consideration of amendments (Current)

Stage 2 began on 17 April 2024. Details of tabled amendments will be published here.

On 20 February 2024, the Business Committee agreed to (PDF 47KB) extend the deadline for Stage 2 proceedings to 14 June 2024.

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¬¬¬Financial Resolution (16 April 2024)

In accordance with Standing Order 26.68 the Presiding Officer indicated that a financial resolution was required for this Bill. Further information about financial resolutions is available in section 3 of the Guide to the scrutiny stages for Public Bills

A Financial Resolution in relation to the Local Government Finance (Wales) Bill was agreed in Plenary on 16 April 2024.

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¬¬¬Stage 1 Committee consideration of the general principles (20 November 2023 – 16 April 2024).

A debate took place in Plenary on 16 April 2024. The motion to agree the general principles of the Bill was agreed.

The Local Government and Housing Committee agreed its approach to Stage 1 consideration on 22 November 2023.

Public consultation - The consultation closed on 15 January 2024, the responses have been published.

Committee dates

The Local Government and Housing Committee will consider the Bill on the following dates

Date and Agenda	Purpose of the meeting	Transcript	Senedd.TV
22 November 2023	Consideration of approach to Stage 1 scrutiny (Private)	n/a	n/a
13 December 2023	Evidence session with the Minister for Finance and Local Government	Transcript	View meeting
25 January 2024	Evidence sessions with stakeholders	Transcript	View meeting
31 January 2024	Evidence sessions with stakeholders	Transcript	View meeting
7 February 2024	Evidence session with the Minister for Finance and Local Government	Transcript	View meeting
29 February 2024	Consideration of draft report	(private)	(private)

The Local Government and Housing Committee laid its report on 15 March 2024. The Welsh Government responded to the report on 11 April 2024.

Additional information

Statement of Policy Intent for Subordinate Legislation

The Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee will consider the Bill on the following dates:

Date and Agenda	Purpose of meeting	Transcript	Senedd.TV
11 December 2023	Evidence session with the Minister for Finance and Local Government	Transcript	Senedd.TV

The Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee laid its report (PDF 1042KB) on 6 March 2024. The Welsh Government responded to the report on 11 April 2024.

The Finance Committee will consider the Bill on the following dates:

Date and Agenda	Purpose of meeting	Transcript	Senedd.TV
7 February 2024	Evidence session with the Minister for Finance and Local Government	Transcript	Senedd.tv