Written questions by Vaz.

What assessment she has made of the potential impact of the proposed changes to the retail business rates multiplier on the non-domestic rating valuation of different retail property types.

The Government is introducing new permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates are worth nearly £1 billion per year, and will benefit over 750,000 properties. We are paying for this through higher rates on the top one per cent of most expensive properties. This includes many large distribution warehouses, such as those used by online giants. The high value multiplier is 33% more than the multiplier for small RHL properties.

Whether her Department has assessed the potential impact of the proposed changes to business rates on small independent bookshops.

At the Budget, the VOA announced updated property values from the 2026 revaluation. This revaluation is the first since the pandemic, which has led to significant increases in rateable values for some properties as they recover from the pandemic.To respond to those who are seeing large increases, Government has already acted to limit increases in bills, announcing a support package worth £4.3 billion package at the Budget. The Government is also introducing new permanently lower tax rates for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new tax rates are worth nearly £1 billion per year and will benefit over 750,000 properties. The Government published information on the effects of the changes to business rates made at Budget 2025 here: Effects of the business rates retail, hospitality and leisure multipliers and high-value multiplier - GOV.UK