Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Finance and Trefnydd – in the Senedd at 2:13 pm on 18 September 2019.
I know that there have been consultations on this matter by Welsh Government in the past as to whether particular classes of property should be exempt from small business rates relief. Certainly, that was something that was looked at in depth when we developed the permanent scheme. Removal of rate relief for self-catering properties wasn't considered appropriate and I think, if I recall correctly, that was because of the impact that it might have on the tourism industry, where these properties are particularly important in some areas in terms of keeping the tourism industry alive. There's obviously a really difficult and delicate balance to be addressed.