Press Release
From
The following Groups on Rochford District Council
Green
Rochford District Residents
Liberal Democrats
Independents
Support Wanted for Residents in Paying Council Tax
The four opposition Groups on Rochford District Council are calling on the Conservative Administration to help residents, who are suffering financial difficulties during the current Covid-19 crisis, by giving them the option to delay their Council Tax payments for the 2020-21 year.
The Group state that “The proposal is to give Council Tax Payers who pay over a ten month period a break at the beginning of the year rather than at the end, so payments will not start until either June or July but would then continue to March 2021. This would give residents much needed help in planning their finances during a difficult time for many.”
This proposal has been put to the Leader of the Council during a number of Telephone Conferences but the Council refuse to Implement it as a policy, unlike many other Councils around the Country.
End
See
https://www-thesun-co-uk.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.thesun.co.uk/money/11337419/homes-council-tax-payment-holiday-how-check-bill/amp/?usqp=mq331AQFKAGwASA%3D&_js_v=0.1#referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com&_tf=From%20%251%24s&share=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thesun.co.uk%2Fmoney%2F11337419%2Fhomes-council-tax-payment-holiday-how-check-bill%2F
Contact:
Cllr Michael Hoy 07939 246352
Cllr Christine Mason 01702 204377
Cllr James Newport 07494226807
Cllr Mike Wilkinson 07484 372324
We own and run a successful business of 32 years in the Rayleigh area. When our business began we paid business rate. However in 1997 a law was passed that all riparian owners of sporting rights would receive 100% business rate relief. Our business is a fishery therefore from this date we no longer paid business rate to RDC. Following Government Covid-19 guidelines we immediately closed our business resulting in loss of income, expenses still have to be met and in fact have increased since this decision. We contacted RDC to apply for the Small Business Grant that Rushi Sunak said no business would fall through the Safety Net. You will appreciate our alarm when we were informed by RDC that we were not entitled to this Grant as in 1997, following the law change, our business had been deleted from the business rate register! Why? This fact is made even more profoundly unbelievable as we know of a similar business to ours in a different council area which commenced business in 2005 receiving 100% business rate relief has obtained the Small Business Grant. We am alarmed that our businesses, and others, were taken off the business rate register in 1997 when prior to this we had been paying business rates. There is an online petition with over 15,000 signatures regarding this matter. The link to this petition is below, please refresh the page to see the current number of signatures.
https://petition.parliament.uk/signatures/82384906/verify?token=2rwj5mbl0vPfP_HwDqdZ We should be more than grateful if you would raise this matter with the appropriate people for this anomaly and discrimination to be rectified.