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Business Rates: Shropshire

Asked by Helen MorganLiberal DemocratTreasuryTabled Answered 26 January 2026UIN 107480

The question

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps she is taking to support independent (a) pubs, (b) hotels and (c) retail businesses due to pay an increase in business rates in Shropshire.

Answered by Dan Tomlinson

The amount of business rates paid on each property is based on the rateable value of the property, assessed by the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), and the multiplier values, which are set by the Government. Rateable values are re-assessed every three years. Revaluations ensure that the rateable values of properties (i.e. the tax base) remain in line with market changes, and that the tax rates adjust to reflect changes in the tax base.

At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since Covid, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties. To support with bill increases, at the Budget, the Government introduced a support package worth £4.3 billion over the next three years to protect ratepayers seeing their bills increase because of the revaluation. As a result, over half of ratepayers will see no bill increases, including 23% seeing their bills go down. Most properties seeing increases will see them capped at 15% or less next year, or £800 for the smallest.

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