Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to the written statement of 28 November 2024 on Local Government Finance, HCWS265, what estimate her Department has made of what business rate receipts will be in absolute terms in the (a) 2024-25 and (b) 2025-26 financial year on which the settlement is based.

For 2024-25, English local authorities estimate business rates receipts will be £26.3 billion, of which £16.2 billion is retained locally. Local authorities have not yet submitted their estimates of business rates income for 2025-26. In addition, authorities receive income from Section 31 grant as part of the business rates retention system.

Core Spending Power, published alongside the settlement, includes Settlement Funding Assessment which is comprised of Revenue Support Grant and a component linked to business rates - Baseline Funding Levels. Baseline Funding Levels represent an authority’s need that is funded via business rates.