Non-Domestic Rating (Nursery Grounds) Bill

Baroness Byford Excerpts

2nd reading (Hansard): House of Lords
Tuesday 24th July 2018 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Byford (Con)]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Earl, Lord Lytton. I will not go into the detail of his speech because he speaks with great knowledge on the valuation agency and how this instance came about.

I very much welcome the Bill. It is the smallest Bill I have ever taken part in—only one side of A4—but I am grateful to the Government for bringing it forward and getting it through Parliament so quickly with support from all sides. The case certainly raised great uncertainty in the industry. In fact, the Government’s response brings great fairness to all those in the business. When he introduced it, the Minister spoke about the need for sustainable growth. I highlight that because I believe that in the next 50 years we will see very different agricultural produce and methods of agriculture than in the past. Much may well come from having an indoor start.

In Leicestershire we have a nursery grower, James Coles. It is a very well-known company that has been going for a long while. When I spoke to it, it had not been affected by the change. It will be interesting if the Minister could tell us why some people have been affected in some places while others have not. The Minister also recorded the Government’s current commitment to £3 billion of grants for farming. That could well go towards looking at new buildings and a new way of producing food.

I record my thanks to the NFU for its briefing. If we thought that the Bill was small, its briefing of seven pages was slightly different. It went into very great detail. I think that all of us taking part in the debate will be fully aware of the various aspects of the issues that it raised. I declare a family farming interest, but, in this case, we do not have an interest in the Bill.

It is of great urgency that we propagate and raise more young plants in this country for sale to other horticultural businesses and to the wider supply trade. Anyone following the vagaries of pest or disease control will know that if we can produce more here and import less we will reduce that risk, which is real. As has been said, the general exemption for agricultural premises stood solidly from 1928 until this case in 2015. Plant nurseries have been treated as agricultural and so are exempt from non-domestic rates, but the court appeal highlighted the gap in the legislation. That is why this legislation is being brought forward today.

As I said earlier, I welcome the legislation, which will enable businesses to flourish. The UK grows excellent products. We are increasing and will continue to increase the amount of homegrown foods, trees and plants, which is important. That will give us greater export opportunities as well.

I shall end by identifying four things that I think are hugely important. The first is to recognise that the agri-food industry is worth some £108 billion. Horticulture, excluding potatoes, is worth some £3.1 billion based on the 2015 figures. The second is the importance of food security and, linked with that, the climate change that we are experiencing now. I am sure that we will need to grow many more trees. The Government have a big push in encouraging the various public bodies and individuals to plant more trees. The third is the importance of new techniques in growing and producing food. Lastly, it is extremely important that we have fairness within the industry. For all those years the industry knew where it stood but then, all of a sudden, the 2015 case gave rise to the need for this Bill.

I hope that the Bill goes through without any need for alteration. It is needed. It affects only a few people, but it could affect more people in future if they diversify in a different way.