Ms Geraldine Tallon:

Local authorities have acted to contain and seek to reduce costs for ratepayers over recent years. In a number of cases reductions have been made while in other cases the rates have been held steady. Rates form a significant part of the overall income of local authorities. We expect this to continue to be the case. The household charge has replaced the Exchequer contribution to the local government fund, and property tax will replace the Exchequer contribution to the local government fund. It is likely in future years that property tax will replace motor tax revenue in the local government fund. This will mean that local government will be self-sustaining and motor tax will become part of the Exchequer taxation regime to a greater extent. We expect that commercial rates will continue to be a significant part of the income of local authorities. These rates amount to approximately 30% of the overall revenue base. This may be a slight decrease on previous years but it still amounts to a significant proportion of local authority funding.