What its most recent assessment is of the number of hospitality businesses in South Lanarkshire that will recieve support as a result of th…

The Scottish Budget sets out a decrease in the three non-domestic property rates for 2026-27 and offers more than £320 million of support through transitional relief schemes and retail hospitality and leisure relief over the next three years.The Scottish Government estimates that around 1,300 properties in South Lanarkshire could benefit from the 15% Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief, subject to the £110,000 cap per business per year, announced at the Scottish Budget. Around 200 of those properties are also estimated to benefit from the additional 25% relief for licensed hospitality premises and music venues confirmed at Stage 1 of the Budget Bill, a total relief of 40%, subject to the £110,000 cap per business per year.Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) area property tax and the NDR Valuation Roll includes information on properties subject to NDR, rather than businesses. The number of businesses in South Lanarkshire that may benefit from relief schemes is therefore uncertain.Local authorities are responsible for administering reliefs. Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief is likely to be considered a subsidy under the Subsidy Control Act 2022 and local authorities should consider whether this relief is awarded as Minimum Financial Assistance (MFA). MFA allows public authorities to award low-value subsidies without needing to comply with the majority of the subsidy control requirements and has a financial threshold which allows recipients to receive up to £315,000 over three financial years (the current and preceding two financial years). Therefore a business-level cap has been applied to protect businesses from the risk of subsequently needing to repay relief awarded beyond MFA thresholds.