Agenda item

Hold a public consultation on the possible proposal to increase the Council Tax Premium on Second Homes and Long-term Empty Properties beyond 100% and up to 300% for the 2023/24 financial year.

To delegate the right to the Head of Finance in consultation with the Head of Legal Services to prepare a public consultation pack in accordance with the

report and any recommendations by the Cabinet.

The report was submitted by Cllr Ioan Thomas

DECISION

Hold a public consultation on the possible proposal to increase the Council Tax Premium on Second Homes and Long-term Empty Properties beyond 100% and up to 300% for the 2023/24 financial year.

To delegate the right to the Head of Finance in consultation with the Head

of Legal Services to prepare a public consultation pack in accordance with the

report and any recommendations by the Cabinet.

DISCUSSION

The report was submitted and it was noted that this report requested a public consultation. It was noted that the Full Council must make an annual decision on the rate of the Premium, and in order to comply with legal requirements, if the Premium level was to be increased, a public consultation on the proposal must be undertaken.

It was explained that the Local Government Finance Act 1992 had allowed a discretion for the Council to charge a premium of up to 100% on the Council Tax of some classes of second homes and long-term empty properties but it was noted that this maximum would increase from 1 April 2023 and that local authorities would have the power to charge a premium of up to 300%. It was stated that getting to grips with the lack of affordable housing in Gwynedd, along with the high number of second homes, was a priority for the Council and charging a Council Tax Premium was one of the tools available to deal with the situation. 

It was reiterated that the Council Tax (Prescribed Classes of Dwellings) Regulations (Wales) 1998 noted that 'second homes' had been categorised into two classes, namely

classes A and B, whilst class C referred to empty property:

·         Class A - An unoccupied dwelling, which is substantially furnished, where the occupation of which is prohibited by law for a continuous period of at least 28 days in the relevant year.

·         Class B - An unoccupied dwelling, which is substantially furnished, where there is no legal restriction on its occupation.

·         Class C - An unoccupied dwelling which is not substantially furnished.

 On 13 July, it was noted that over 4600 houses were subject to the Premium on second homes (Class B), 200 of them did not pay the premium as they were subject to exceptions and 760 within Class A where occupation was prohibited for a period of at least 28 days in the relevant year.  Since the Premium was introduced, it was stated that the Council had determined annually to charge the same level of premium on long-term empty properties and second homes, but it was possible to charge different levels if local circumstances justified it. 

In terms of legal requirements, it was explained that the decision was made annually by the Full Council and that an Impact Assessment on Equality Characteristics, the Welsh Language and the Socio-Economic Disadvantage needed to be submitted to the Cabinet and the Full Council. It was added that it was required to hold a consultation and engage with stakeholders before charging any premium and it was noted that the department intended to hold it for 28 days in October. Following this, it was added that a report would be submitted to the Cabinet in November before it would be discussed at the Full Council meeting in December. It was emphasised that the matter would also be scrutinised by the Governance and Audit Committee. 

The Monitoring Officer added that any Cabinet decision was subject to a Scrutiny call-in period, but it was explained that the Cabinet under section 7 of the Constitution had the right to make an Urgent Decision in discussion with the Chair of the Council. The Cabinet was asked to treat it as an urgent decision so that the department could proceed immediately, noting that this would be reported at the Full Council.

Observations arising from the discussion

·         Support was noted to proceed to consultation and the urgent need for the decision to be made was understood.

·         The need was stated to send a letter to the Welsh Government to enquire about the exceptions for those who paid the Premium.