Hot on the heels of yesterdays announcement that the speed limits in the area are to be enforced using mobile speed cameras (something that we have been seeking for years), Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has said that local Councils will, in future, be able to keep more of the Business Rates that they collect locally.
In York, the Council collects around £85 million from business ratepayers each year. Currently this is all handed onto the Treasury. About £39 million is then returned to the City. The difference is redistributed to other parts of the country.
It is a similar situation to what has been happening with the income from Council House rents. Over £5 million a year is currently siphoned off from York tenants to subsidise other housing accounts.
Now both these anomalies are being addressed by the Coalition government. It means that any growth in the income from businesses could be invested in improving infrastructure and public service capacity in the City.