John Paul Phelan (Carlow-Kilkenny, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Regarding Deputy Barry's points, the compelling case is that commercial rates are due from occupiers of commercial premises, not owners. It is often the case - in fact, I would say it is the case in most examples - that the owner is the occupier, particularly where it is a small operation paying the rates. The compelling case for this change is that, if an owner rents a premises to a person who runs a business in it and the latter decides to cease trading for whatever reason, rates legislation has always operated to the effect that the latter is the person on whom the liability falls. Rates are not a property tax or anything else other than a charge on commercial activity in order to fund local authority activities in the area.

Amendment No. 7 is necessary to meet those very rare cases where people have not registered. Deputy Casey is right about the legal validity of a rates bill issued to the owner. Currently, if an operator cannot be ascertained, the next logical fallback is generally for the rates authority to engage with the arms of the State that operators register their properties with, for example, the Property Registration Authority, and determine where the bill should be served. The Deputy is right to point out that this would not occur often, but we are trying to ensure that there is a specific process that a rateable authority can go through in order to ascertain who the occupier of the premises is.