Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Business rate debt soars to £3 million
CASH-strapped Dundee City Council lost out on more than £3 million owed to it by business owners last year.
The local authority was forced to write off £3.012m it was due from traders in the city in 2016/17, a fivefold increase from the level in 2012.
A number of trading chiefs have run campaigns in recent years calling for a cut in business rates to help attract and keep firms.
Patrick Rohde, who owns several shops and bars in the city, said that he was “perplexed” at how so many business owners got away with not paying their rates.
Mr Rohde, who runs Aitken Wines and the Wine Press, said: “The problem for me is that there are too many businesses just not getting the rates paid in the first place.
“I don’t think that the rates are too high but I think they are raised to what they are because so many people don’t pay them.
“If everyone paid their rates then the council could lower them.
“I can’t get my head around it. I’m perplexed at how businesses get away with it.
“The council needs to be more proactive. I think they should also have more power to stop a business trading if it’s not paying its rates.”
Graham Bradley, chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses in Dundee and Angus, said: “The rates are too high. It costs £37,000 a year for a property on Lochee High Street and they wonder why they can’t fill it.
“I know there are rules and regulations the council has to abide by but there needs to be a complete revamp.”
Councillor Willie Sawers, depute convener of the policy and resources committee, said the council made “every effort” to recover money it’s owed but sometimes that wasn’t possible if a business closed.
He added: “We understand that business can struggle to pay their nondomestic rates, which is why we engage with businesses early to help those that are struggling to pay.
“In addition to this, we recently agreed a one-off spending commitment of £135,000 to develop a scheme to support new and existing small businesses who are experiencing financial hardship to enable them to sustain their businesses within the city.”