Consultations

04/03/2011/ 1326

IRRV Evidence: Welsh Government Business Rates Policy Review

Call for evidence: Business Rate Policy Review

"We want your evidence and views on options for how the business rate
regime and related rate relief schemes can be modified to better encourage
economic development."Welsh Government
Start of consultation:  05/12/2011
End of consultation:  27/01/2012 

Link to Consultation

IRRV Response

 

Localising support for council tax in England: Consultation

Localising support for council tax is part of a wider policy of decentralisation, giving councils increased financial autonomy and a greater stake in the economic future of their local area. This supports the Government's wider agenda to enable stronger, balanced economic growth across the country and complements the Government's proposals for other incentives, such as the New Homes Bonus.

The Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation (IRRV) is pleased to provide the attached response to the above consultation paper.

Link to Consultation

IRRV Response

 

Options Paper for the inclusion of Local Authority Benefit Fraud Investigation Teams in the Single Fraud Investigation Service�

IRRV response and Documentation

IRRV Response
Pages 13 to 16

 

IRRV Response: Rating of Commercial Properties: Small Businesses, Large Retail Properties and Empty Shops

The Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation (IRRV) is pleased to respond to this consultation.�

 

 

IRRV Response

 

The Communities and Local Government Select Committee: Brief Inquiry into the Implications of Welfare Reform

The Communities and Local Government Select Committee of the House of Commons has decided to conduct a brief inquiry into the implications of welfare reform � specifically the localisation of council tax benefit and elements of the Social Fund � insofar as it affects matters in the remit of DCLG.

Members are interested in exploring the ramifications of these changes for users and administrators of these benefits, local authorities in particular. The implications of housing benefit being incorporated into Universal Credit may also be of interest.

IRRV Response

 

 

Dynamic Benefits - Repose from Lord Freud

The President of the Institute has received the following reply to our 105 questions from the Minister for Welfare Reform. We will be following this up immediately as well as sending further questions. As we get the answers we will post them on the website in a specific area that will be open to all.

Response from Lord Freud

�

Letter to Lord Freud

The position of the Institute has been to support the principles behind �Dynamic Benefits� and further to support the introduction of the Universal Credit; however the IRRV cannot support the inclusion of housing costs in Lord Freud's proposals.

Below is a draft of the letter sent to Lord Freud by the Institutes President Kerry Macdermott

My Institute is the only professional body in the United Kingdom that specialises in the law and practice of local authority revenues and local taxation collection together with the income related benefits that support these processes.

The position of the Institute has been to support the principles behind �Dynamic Benefits� and further to support the introduction of the Universal Credit; however we cannot support the inclusion of housing costs in your proposals.

There are many reasons behind this statement and in order to give your officials every opportunity to advise you to step back from a potential disaster that will make the Community Charge pale into insignificance we wish to offer you a constructive dialogue which will assist your thinking. The dialogue will be in the form of a series of questions which we hope, as you answer them; will give you an insight into the problems you will be facing.

The questions will be posted on the �open� area of our website and we will post the answers as your officials provide them. We hope you will welcome this approach and allow every opportunity for a constructive dialogue to take place which will assist you in the difficult decisions you will have to make over the next two years.
The first one hundred or so questions are attached and these have all been raised by practitioners as important issues that will need to be addressed to ensure a successful implementation of the Universal Credit.

May I also take this opportunity to personally thank you for the support you have given the Institute at our recent conferences. If your officials need any clarification on the questions, can they contact the Institutes Chief Executive David Magor on david.magor@irrv.org.uk

Link to 105 First Questions

DownloadDownload Questions

Download Letter

DownloadDownload

A unified Courts and Tribunals Service

From 30/11/10 to 25/02/11

This consultation sets out the benefits which a unified courts and tribunals service has the potential to deliver.

The consultation is aimed at other government departments and agencies, members of the judiciary, legal practitioners and their representative organisations, bodies representing tribunal and court users and users themselves.

Link to consultation

DownloadDownload Consultation

Link to IRRV Response

DownloadDownload Response





Sharing customer data between DWP and local authorities: Call for evidence

Date of publication: 11 March 2011


Deadline date: 25 April 2011

This call for evidence seeks views about proposed new arrangements for sharing customer data between DWP and local authorities, in relation to the provision of welfare services.

Parliament is considering introducing regulation-making powers which will broaden current data sharing powers. If the new power is introduced customer details could be shared in more circumstances than is currently the case. The aim is to make it easier and simpler for customers to apply for and receive a range of different services and benefits. This call for evidence will provide an opportunity for all interested parties to submit their views.

Sharing customer data between DWP and local authorities: Call for evidence (119KB) PDF




21st Century Welfare Consultation

(1 October 2010 deadline)

Through this consultation the Department for Work and Pensions seeks views to inform its thinking on reforms to the benefits and Tax Credits system, including the idea of a single integrated Universal Credit. The full consultation paper can be found at:


Link to consultation

The full consultation paper can be found at:
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/consultations/2010/21st-century-welfare/

IRRV Response:

DownloadDownload the IRRV submission in PDF Format

 

Government is Urged to Reconsider Localisation Issues in its Welfare Reform Bill

The Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation has welcomed the findings of the Parliamentary Report into the localisation issues in Welfare Reform, which was published on the 13th of October. David Magor, IRRV Chief Executive, commented on the issue of the Report findings:

“My Institute supports the general thrust of the recommendations put forward in the Report of the Parliamentary Communities and Local Government Committee, under the Chairmanship of Clive Betts MP. “The Institute’s views on issues of localisation and welfare reform were presented orally to the Committee in its evidence session by the then President Kerry Macdermott. I am very pleased that the Committee have had regard to the issues we presented, which is evidenced in the many references to the Institute’s evidence in the report.”

Full Press Release

25/10/2011 / 1362

CLG Parliamentary Committee of Inquiry: Localism and Decentralisation of Public Services

1 October deadline

The Communities and Local Government Committee has decided to conduct an inquiry into the Government's plans for localism and decentralisation of public services.
The Committee will be considering:

  • The extent to which decentralisation leads to more effective public service delivery; and what the limits are, or should be, of localism;
  • The lessons for decentralisation from Total Place, and the potential to build on the work done under that initiative, particularly through place-based budgeting Place-based budgeting is a proposed funding model which would see money allocated to a place for public services in an area; local decision-making would determine the relative amounts to be spent on each service. For further details, see the Local Government Association's publication Place-based budgets - the future governance of local public services, available at www.lga.gov.uk
  • The role of local government in a decentralised model of local public service delivery, and the extent to which localism can and should extend to other local agents;
  • The action which will be necessary on the part of Whitehall departments to achieve effective decentralised public service delivery;
  • The impact of decentralisation on the achievement of savings in the cost of local public services and the effective targeting of cuts to those services;
  • What, if any, arrangements for the oversight of local authority performance will be necessary to ensure effective local public service delivery.
  • How effective and appropriate accountability can be achieved for expenditure on the delivery of local services, especially for that voted by Parliament rather than raised locally.

The CLG Committee would be particularly interested to hear of examples, from the UK or overseas, of models of decentralised public service delivery from which lessons could be learnt for further decentralisation in England.

 

DownloadDownload the IRRV submission in PDF Format 

18/10/2010 / 1256

IRRV submission to HB Reform consultation

This consultation seeks views to inform our reforms of Housing Benefit. Our proposals will ensure that Housing Benefit is better able to help people into work, is fairer, more efficiently delivered and represents good value for money for the taxpayer.

We would like to hear from all who are interested, including tenants, landlords, local authorities, housing associations, and advice workers. The consultation applies to England, Wales and Scotland, but we would be interested in views from any source.

Link to consultation

 

IRRV Response: DWP Consultation: Supporting People into Work: The next stage of housing benefit reform

DownloadDownload the IRRV submission in PDF Format

25/02/2010 / 1181

Proposals to close Magistrates' Courts and County Courts in England and Wales

Consultation closed on 15 September 2010

A summary document about the changes is attached. A link to the relevant 16 consultation documents is:  http://www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/consultations.htm

DownloadDownload the IRRV submission in PDF Format 


DownloadDownload Summary


18/10/2010 / 1257