To consider a way forward in respect of the Council’s Membership of the Gloucestershire Business Rates Pool.  

1.      That Tewkesbury Borough Council withdraw from the Gloucestershire Business Rates Pool for the financial year 2016/2017.

2.      That authority be delegated to the S151 Officer, in consultation with the Chief Executive and Lead Member for Finance and Asset Management, to manage, on an ongoing basis, the Council’s position with regard to Pool membership.

3.      That authority be delegated to the S151 Officer, in consultation with the Chief Executive and Lead Member for Finance and Asset Management, to agree any amendments in relation to the existing pooling agreement as a result of the Council’s withdrawal.  

4.      That the Borough Solicitor be authorised to enter into revised pooling agreements, on such terms as she considers appropriate, in consultation with the S151 Officer, Chief Executive and Lead Member for Finance and Asset Management.

44.1           The report of the Finance and Asset Management Group Manager, circulated at Pages No. 87-91, detailed a way forward in respect of the Council’s membership of the Gloucestershire Business Rates Pool. Members were asked to approve the Council’s withdrawal from the Pool for the financial year 2016/17; to delegate authority to manage, on an ongoing basis, the Council’s position with regard to Pool membership; to delegate the agreement of any amendments in relation to the existing pooling agreement as a result of the Council’s withdrawal; and to authorise the Borough Solicitor, in consultation with the Section 151 Officer, the Chief Executive and the Lead Member for Finance and Asset Management, to enter into revised Pooling agreements on such terms as she considered appropriate.

44.2           The Finance and Asset Management Group Manager explained that the Council had been a member of the Gloucestershire Business Rates Pool since the inception of the retained Business Rates Scheme in April 2013. During the 2014/15 financial year, the Council had suffered significant losses within the Scheme, mainly as a result of successful appeals by Virgin Media. This had resulted in the Pool incurring a substantial deficit which had been met by the individual Authorities of Gloucestershire including Tewkesbury. The appeals list held by Tewkesbury contained a number of outstanding appeals by Virgin Media and a request had also been made by Virgin Media to have its individual assessments across the Country combined into one single assessment; this could mean that, in future, there could be no Virgin Media business rates collected in Tewkesbury Borough or that all of them could fall within the Borough - it was just unknown at this stage. Both of those factors presented an ongoing risk to the Council and the Pool and, in order to mitigate some of that risk, it was recommended that Tewkesbury Borough Council should withdraw from the Pool until such time as the risk had been significantly reduced.

44.3           The Pool had been impacted as it was responsible for the safety net payment in the event it was required. This also meant that Tewkesbury Borough, as a member of the Pool, was liable for part of the safety net payment. As an individual Authority the Borough Council would not have to make any of the safety net payment as the whole of it would have been met by the Government. The safety net payment met from the Gloucestershire Pool had totalled £3.95million and the impact of that payment had been to eliminate the growth generated in other Districts; the utilisation of the Pool’s small reserve; and contributions of £2.1million of revenue balances from across all Gloucestershire Authorities. Currently, it was suggested that the Council withdraw from the Pool for 2016/17 and that the position continue to be reassessed to understand whether it was possible to go back into the Pool in future or whether the Council should come out of it completely.

44.4           The Finance and Asset Management Group Manager advised that the recommendations within the report had been discussed with Gloucestershire colleagues and they had indicated support for them. If the Committee agreed with the recommendations, the Finance and Asset Management Group Manager would make the necessary declaration to the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) by the end of the month as required. A Member indicated that he had attended Leadership Gloucestershire’s last meeting and the members there had also been supportive of Tewkesbury leaving the Pool. They had seen Tewkesbury Borough as being a benefit to the Pool with the growth that was likely to happen in the Borough but, unfortunately, given the Virgin Media appeals, it was felt that the Borough Council should leave. In terms of the appeals, the Finance and Asset Management Group Manager explained that currently Virgin Media had put in a request for review and had been asked to provide a lot of evidence to support its case. The Valuation Office had indicated that it would be at least 12 months until the issue was resolved but further than that the timescale was unknown.

44.5           Accordingly, it was