Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the Valuation Office Agency being able to increase property valuations without visiting the premises on business rates.

The Valuation Office Agency collects a large amount of rental and trade evidence from occupiers and landlords for revaluations, and then applies one of three RICS-approved valuation methods. We inspect properties when we need to gather additional information or confirm facts. This has been the established practice for all revaluations since 1990.

Rateable values reflect the open market rental value of a property at a specific date.