3.The Act deals with non-domestic rates, which are a property-based tax paid on non-domestic properties. Rates are paid to local authorities and used to fund local authority services. The rates payable in respect of a particular property are based on the rateable value of the property as entered in the valuation roll.
4.The Act is divided into 5 Parts. Section 1(1) sets out how the Parts are arranged and summarises what each Part does as follows:
Part 2 amends the law about the administration and enforcement of non-domestic rates,
Part 3 makes provision about information-gathering powers for assessors and local authorities,
Part 4 makes provision about power for the Scottish Ministers to make regulations to tackle avoidance of non-domestic rates,
Part 5 contains general and final provisions.
5.Parts 3 and 4 make new freestanding provision, as do sections 14, 16, 20, 22, 23 and 24 within Part 2. The remaining provisions within Part 2 amend existing Acts. Statutory provision about non-domestic rates is spread across a large number of Acts and statutory instruments. Section 1(2) provides definitions of a number of Acts that are amended by or referred to in more than one section of the Act as follows:
the “1854 Act” is the Lands Valuation (Scotland) Act 1854 – non-domestic rates are payable in respect of “lands and heritages”, which is defined in section 42 of the 1854 Act.(1) This definition is fundamental to non-domestic rating legislation, and is adopted for the purposes of the Act by section 42. The 1854 Act is also amended by sections 12 and 26 of the Act.
the “1956 Act” is the Valuation and Rating (Scotland) Act 1956 – it is amended by sections 4, 11 and 36 of the Act.
the “1962 Act” is the Local Government (Financial Provisions etc.) (Scotland) Act 1962 – section 4 of the 1962 Act provides for mandatory and discretionary relief from payment of non-domestic rates for charities and certain other organisations, and is amended by sections 17 and 18 of the Act.
the “1963 Act” is the Local Government (Financial Provisions) (Scotland) Act 1963 – it is amended by sections 5, 11 and 36 of the Act.
the “1975 Act” is the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975 – the 1975 Act contains provision about the valuation roll and revaluation. It is amended by sections 2, 3, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13 and 21 of the Act.
6.These definitions are also used throughout these Explanatory Notes.
7.A number of other Acts are amended by the Act, but are not defined in section 1 (due to only being amended by one section).
8.Section 1 only provides definitions for Acts. Definitions of the terms “lands and heritages”, “non-domestic rates” and “valuation roll” are provided in section 42. Again, these definitions are used throughout these Explanatory Notes.
The core of the definition is as follows: “the expression “lands and heritages” shall extend to and include all lands, houses, shootings, and deer forests, fishings, woods, copse, and underwood from which revenue is actually derived, ferries, piers, harbours, quays, wharfs, docks, canals, railways, mines, minerals, quarries, coalworks, waterworks, limeworks, brickworks, ironworks, gasworks, factories, and all buildings and pertinents thereof, and such class or classes of plant or machinery in or on any lands and heritages as may be prescribed by the Scottish Ministers by regulations”. (But note that the reference to “houses” in this definition does not mean that “dwellings”, as defined in Part 2 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992, are subject to non-domestic rates – by virtue of that Part of that Act, “dwellings” are subject to council tax rather than rates.)