Firstly, can I welcome the statement? The property valuation is nearly 20 years out of date. It is almost certain that values will have gone up. There's also that values will have changed relative to other properties. Of course, the advantage of a tax on property values is that it's very difficult to avoid, compared to income tax. Council tax is set on band D and all other band payments are based on that. Properties in band A pay two thirds the amount charged on band D, and properties in band H pay twice band D. What that means is a £40,000 house pays two thirds of a £120,000 house despite being a third of the value; a £420,000 house pays twice as much as a £120,000 house and three times as much as a £40,000 house. We also have a situation, which is called the Blaenau Gwent problem, where over half the properties in Blaenau Gwent are in band A.

We know this whole system is unfair. The payment is not proportional to the value and is skewed to those living in lower value properties paying more, and we know that the value of properties is probably the best indicator of wealth we've got. Will the Minister consider a revaluation with narrower bands and with no upper limit, and revaluations at least every five years? Will the Minister also consider returning business rates to local authorities? And thirdly, would not a land value tax mean—not mean—that there'd be no social housing in areas of high land value?