Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is a rates issue, not a valuation issue. Local authorities are under a statutory obligation to levy rates on any property used for commercial purposes in accordance with the details entered in the valuation lists prepared by the independent Commissioner of Valuation under the Valuation Act 2001. The levying and collection of rates are matters for each local authority. Forfás has concluded that, as property tax, commercial rates should not discriminate between businesses based on performance. As part of a balanced taxation system, other taxes are more appropriately designed to account for business performance, including corporate tax, capital gains tax and labour taxes. The role of the Commissioner of Valuation and this Bill, as distinct from other potential pieces of legislation, is to put a value on a property, which is subsequently used in the calculation of the rates due. The Commissioner of Valuation does not collect rates. This legislation governs the valuation process, not the rates process, and we cannot mix the two in one piece of legislation.