Mr. Tom Morgan:

In terms of the question of discretion, I have recently become aware of an emerging issue. We are receiving many complaints against local authorities concerning the administration of the non-principal private residence, NPPR, charge. Legally speaking, local authorities have the discretion to mitigate penalties in individual cases if the circumstances demand it. I have found that, when they interact with people who are in dispute with them, they are coy about pointing out that they have this discretionary power. Standard letters are being issued claiming that there are no waivers or discretions when that is legally not the case.

As this issue has started cropping up in so many places throughout the country, I have written to the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government about it. I am due to meet the Department in the coming weeks. It is an ongoing issue that I hope we can resolve with the Department, but there is a concern that local authorities are not using their statutory discretion in individual cases.