Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will make an estimate of the number of pubs that will benefit from the extension of rural rates relief.

As of 31 December 2014, 4,690 businesses were in receipt of mandatory rural rate relief. The Department does not hold data on how many of these businesses are pubs, so it is not possible to estimate the number of pubs that will benefit from the extension of rural rate relief. As announced at Autumn Statement we are doubling the level of rural rate relief. Eligible pubs and petrol stations with a rateable value of £12,500 or below will benefit from 100% relief.