John O'Dowd
Upper Bann · Sinn Féin · Northern Ireland
“As I set out in response to the previous question, we have in place the vacant property rate relief scheme and the small business rate relief scheme, which are very successful. I set aside £10 million in the draft Budget for small business rate relief to be invested.”
“I am particularly keen to hear from those impacted by vacant commercial units and especially about how any phased increase can be implemented in a sustainable way that is fair, proportionate and sustainable within the tax system.”
“I outlined my intent to take that approach in my statement on 18 November, alongside the fact that reform of rating policy should support growth, make better use of property and ensure that the system is fair, proportionate and aligned with wider economic objectives.”
“The accelerator will operate alongside our highly successful Back in Business scheme, which has helped to bring over 100 vacant high street properties back into use since May 2024. Those issues have been the subject of considerable interest and comment in the Assembly, and it is right that we grasp the nettle now.”
“There are no circumstances in which a hard border would be good for the people of Ireland; it would not be good for anyone. Those who suggest that are being naive at best and dangerous at worst, in the sense of not understanding this society. <BR /> <BR />Rural communities along the border are one and the same.”
“This announcement represents the next step in that. That said, I also put on record my intention to strengthen support for small businesses. In that vein, £10 million has been set aside in the draft Budget to broaden the impact of the small business rate relief scheme in order to increase the number of businesses that can benefit from it.…”
The complete record
Every one of 6,140 lines we hold for John O'Dowd, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 10 of 123.
“It reflects the reality of the pressures that we are facing in relation to SEN and in relation to healthcare.”
“As I read out, the repayment schedule for the reserve claim is £80 million in 2026-27, £160 million in 2027-28 and the same in 2028-29. The allocations for the spring forecast are £227 million in 2026-27, £5·6 million in 2027-28 and £144·9 million in 2028-29. The only year when there is credit, for want of a better term, to the Executive is 2026-27. While all additional funding is welcome, it largely balances off the reserve claim, and we will certainly engage with the British Government on that. It is clear that the Barnett consequentials in the spring forecast funding came about as a result of the historical underfunding and pressures faced by councils in England in SEN provision, and we are facing similar pressures here. As I said in the Chamber previously, that blows out of the water the myth of financial mismanagement.”
“The review is scheduled to complete later this month and, along with the analysis of the consultation responses, will feed into the Executive's final Budget discussions. <BR /> <BR />The Chancellor's spring forecast provided the Executive with an additional £387 million across the multi-year Budget period. We must also, however, take into account the requirement to repay the reserve claim over three years, with £80 million due in 2026-27 and £160 million due in both 2027-28 and 2028-29. It will be for the Executive, as part of their deliberations on agreeing a final Budget, to determine collectively how the implications of the spring forecast and the reserve claim repayments are reflected in departmental allocations.”
“With your permission, Deputy Speaker, I will answer questions 3 and 9 together. I published my multi-year Budget proposals on 6 January and launched a public consultation on the same day. The draft Budget does not provide the level of funding that I would wish for public services. Rather, it reflects what is possible within the available envelope. The consultation closed on 3 March, and my Department is now analysing the responses before sharing them with the Executive. <BR /> <BR />Alongside that, engagement with the Treasury on the open-book review of departmental budgets is progressing at pace. The review is designed to give the Treasury a fuller understanding of the significant pressures that we are facing and to strengthen our case for fairer funding for public services.”
“We are undertaking a series of reviews, and I do not want to pre-empt any decisions on any information that may come to me. I have said in the House previously that I want to give a rates holiday to businesses that extend their premises physically and so on, but let us work our way through the processes and see where they take us.”
“Now that the Member has brought that to my attention, I will take it under consideration as we move to the rates review. I am conscious of the very personal and emotive nature of such settings and the services that they offer bereaved families, including, as the Member pointed out, bereaved families who have lost a child.”
“Over 77% of funeral directors' chapels of rest in the valuation list here currently benefit from small business rate relief, meaning that they get between 20% and 50% off their rates bill. I have recently completed a consultation process on small business rate relief, and I am considering the responses received to it. I aim to bring proposals to the Executive in the near future to review and extend support provided through that scheme by increasing the thresholds, subject to Executive agreement in the context of the available budget. All rate reliefs and exemptions will be reviewed as part of ongoing review of rate support measures.”
“We currently provide our business sector with around a quarter of a billion pounds' worth of support. Across the whole tax base, 75% of non-domestic properties are currently entitled to some form of rate relief. The current small business rate relief scheme supports almost 30,000 businesses with discounts of between 20% and 50% on their rates. I proposed in my draft Budget a fund of around £10 million to increase support further for the small business sector, which will include the hospitality sector and others.”
“The hospitality sector offered to bring evidence to me. I welcome the opportunity to engage with the sector on that evidence when it is presented. The detail of that evidence and the need for discussion around it will dictate how long it will be before I can evaluate it.”
“It is not a simple as concentrating on one premises or one sector; it is a multifaceted equation. As I said to your colleague, the best way forward was to stop the process, take time to engage and then move forward.”
“I cannot comment on any individual business. However, a significant increase in Reval suggests that there was a significant physical extension to the business, a change in the business model where different services were provided or an increase in income for that business. Those are the usual projections. Furthermore, all businesses had the benefit of the COVID moneys removed. There was a significant leap upwards for many businesses in those circumstances, but other businesses will have seen reductions. The Member will be aware that those who focused solely on the hospitality sector now want to focus on other sectors. I currently face pre-action letters from at least one sector that has concerns that, having benefited from Reval2026, it is now losing out as a result of it.”
“It is unlikely that anything will be published in the remainder of this calendar year. We will decide our next move in discussions with all sectors, whether that will be Reval2027 or Reval2028. However, it was right to stop, engage and then decide on a way forward.”
“As I outlined in the regional rates debate in the House on 10 March, rates bills will issue this year that are based on rateable values in the current valuation list, creating certainty for businesses in respect of their 2026-27 rates bills. I will address the next steps for Reval2026 in due course.”
“I will answer questions 1, 6 and 10 together. <BR /> <BR />On 29 January 2026, I outlined my decision to stop further work on the Reval2026 process. In my meeting with the hospitality sector on 29 January, I advised that I was looking forward to engaging with the hospitality sector and other sectors on any proposals that would be brought forward. My immediate focus over the past few weeks has been on advancing the legislation required to facilitate the annual billing exercise for the rating system. Alongside that, I am focused on progressing the draft multi-year Budget, following the close of that consultation earlier this month.”
“With your permission, a LeasCheann Comhairle,”
“I beg to move the Marriage and Civil Partnership Bill, which is a Bill to make provision as to the persons who may solemnise marriage; to make provision about the minimum age for marriage and civil partnership; and for connected purposes.”
“However, when it comes to the challenges that we face, we need a united front from the Executive and the Assembly in challenging the British Government to fund this place properly in order to allow the Executive to deliver the public services that our public deserve, and to invest in the economy to create good, well-paid jobs and support families and workers out there. There will always be challenges and differences of opinion on these matters, but, for the next number of weeks, we need a united front to present a case to the Government on how we fund this place.”
“No, you had your chance. All that I am asking you to do is think through what you are calling for and, rather than make calls from the corner of the Chamber, allow the process to play out in a measured, responsible and informed way. What you are calling for may make for good headlines on social media, but it makes absolutely no sense. <BR /> <BR />As I said, we are dealing with the 2025-26 Budget, the Vote on Account, etc and finalising that process. The debates over the past number of weeks have been useful, informative and, at times, challenging, as they should be.”
“Those unions will be able to make representations to the review when it is complete. We are working our way through a range of reviews, and I will make an announcement in due course. All that I am saying to you is this: consider what you are calling for and the implications that there would be for many small to medium-sized enterprises, including those in your constituency, and for the many workers who live in your constituency. It is easy to make the rallying call to take on the capitalists. Great: let us take on the capitalists. The implications of what you trying to do through your rallying call would, I suspect, lead to the closure of many of the small businesses in your constituency.”
“There are many people in jobs in your constituency who are benefiting from the scheme, so before we do something, let us establish all the facts . Let us review the policy and see what the best way forward is.”
“I will in a second. Some 81% of those properties have a net annual value of £50,000 or under, so they are by no means large businesses in the context of the rating system. As well as providing support to small manufacturers, industrial derating provides support to large manufacturers. Such businesses are an important source of employment. I do not agree with a number of them, and my views on them are known, but we have to deal with such matters through the ongoing review. For you to stand up in the Chamber and simply say, "Do away with it. These big capitalists are doing this and that" might be right in a small minority of cases, but there are many businesses in your constituency that are benefiting from industrial derating.”
“It is invaluable and deserves much more public attention than it receives. <BR /> <BR />Apologies if I have missed out anyone. Finally, I turn to Gerry Carroll's call for an end to industrial derating. I have said that I will review the industrial derating policy. Just under 4,500 properties are currently in receipt of industrial derating. Some 54% of those properties have a net annual value of £15,000 or under, which is the current net annual value threshold for the small business rate relief scheme. That means that they are very small businesses. They are businesses operating in your constituency, Gerry, that are providing services and support to the local community and to the wider economy. They are providing employment in your constituency. If you want me to bring industrial derating to an end, you will need to consider that.”
“I have asked them to work with the community and voluntary sector to see whether they can support it through their programmes and, if so, to move in that direction. <BR /> <BR />I agree with Eóin Tennyson about public-sector pay. It should be front-loaded into all future Budgets. I have made such a recommendation in my draft Budget. <BR /> <BR />The Chair of the Committee for Communities outlined opportunities and challenges for the Department. He also spoke about the scrutiny work that the Committee is doing. I have said it before and will say it again: the role of Assembly scrutiny Committees is often undervalued beyond the walls of this place. Through their forward work programmes, their inquiries, their reports and their scrutiny of Departments, they do excellent work.”
“It is not about simply accepting that every argument or every public pronouncement that is made is based in fact or is the basis on which a Budget should be set. It does not work that way. <BR /> <BR />Diane spoke about the local growth fund. It is not included in the draft Budget because it is a British Government responsibility. I concur with the remarks that Gavin Robinson made last week at the NI Affairs Committee, where he robustly challenged the Secretary of State on the matter. The British Government need to step up and fund it properly. I will continue to lobby them on that. I have written to my Executive colleagues to ask them whether any of the programmes that they are running could be used to complement the local growth fund.”
“I have no doubt that the scrutiny Committees here would continue to scrutinise the role and spend of Ministers and Departments and to ensure that there is efficient, effective expenditure of funds. I would also challenge any Minister or any senior civil servant who came to me and said, "I need x amount to do z", and I would ask them to justify that. That is what good financial management is about.”
“<BR /> <BR />How the reserve claim will be dealt with has been well recorded and well announced. That will form part of our discussions with Treasury and the Government. I hope that the Executive finalise their three-year Budget in the near future. It is worth noting that it was 3 April last year before we finalised this year's Budget, so we still have time. <BR /> <BR />The leader of the Opposition asked me to clarify my comments on "shroud-waving". Let me be very clear about that. If I stood up in front of the Speaker and said, "We have achieved everything we wanted. I believe that the Executive are now being properly resourced and funded, and Departments have achieved the funding that they require to deliver public services", I would still expect Ministers to run an efficient and effective service and to scrutinise their spend.”
“I wish Scotland and Wales well in that matter — I am not suggesting for one second that the Budget for either Administration should be curtailed or cut back — but the Executive need to be funded in a fair way as well if we are to achieve the common objectives of good public services and an economy here that benefits the people whom it is there to serve. <BR /> <BR />On the Barnett consequentials, Members will be aware of the figures for SEN and business rates elsewhere. The Executive will decide as part of the Budget discussions how that funding will be allocated. There is demand across a number of areas. As I said in a previous debate, the Executive's pressures reflect the pressures in England on health and education. If you look south of the border, you see that it has pressures from SEN as well.”
“<BR /> <BR />It is worth noting some figures on that. There has been a lot of good work done on relative need, including in the Holtham report, and Assembly colleagues are aware of all those things. We now have 124% relative need, which means that, as I often say, we get a fairer slice of the cake but the cake is not big enough. Members will also be interested in these figures. In 2025-26, the Executive were, generally, funded 0·6% above need. Wales was funded 8·6% above need. Scotland was funded 20·5% above need. When the Treasury and others say to me and my Executive colleagues that we have received a fair funding settlement, that we are being funded to the level of need etc — all the lines that you have heard before — I will push back.”
“Mr O'Toole raised, in this case, a valid question about where the Budget process is at. The public consultation closed on 3 March. The responses are now being scrutinised. The open-book process is taking place as we speak. I emphasise the fact that it is not the case that Treasury is involving itself in devolved decisions. It has no authority to do that, and the terms of reference that the open-book process is operating under do not allow it to do so. I hope that that programme of work will be finished around 20 March. That will allow the Executive to enter into detailed discussions on the way forward. In tandem with that, and as part of the open-book process, there need to be discussions with the British Government about how this place is funded and how we bring forward a Budget that we will be able to balance over the next three years.”
“In fairness to Matthew, he knows fine well that the British Government are underfunding this place and that the Executive face huge challenges in trying to balance the Budget and deliver front-line public services moving forward, but he just cannot help himself on occasion. Given his role, I suppose that he has to say that. The Executive are, quite rightly, open to challenge and scrutiny. I note that they have now dropped the term "constructive Opposition"; it is now just "the Opposition". A constructive Opposition would have been much more beneficial to us all.”
“I jest; the leader of the Opposition is a lovely person.”
“I thank all Members who expressed their views during today's debate and those who contributed to earlier debates on the Bill and its associated Supply resolutions. To clarify, we are debating the finalisation of the Budget for 2025-26 and the Vote on Account; it is not the multi-year Budget that we are voting on. I listened to Members' contributions with interest. Although I may not agree with all the arguments that were presented, it is useful to hear them, and it is only right and proper that we scrutinise the Bill and other legislation relating to the Budget. <BR /> <BR />I will turn to some comments from colleagues. I find the Chair of the Committee to be much nicer than the leader of the Opposition. He is much more helpful, I have to say.”
“I look forward to hearing Members' final thoughts on this important legislation.”
“The Budget Bill reflects the same position and will enable us to continue to deliver public services for the rest of the 2025-26 financial year, ensuring that Departments do not run out of money. The Vote on Account will allow services to continue beyond 1 April 2026 and will allow the Executive and the Assembly time to finalise a Budget for the 2026-27 financial year that will be reflected in the Budget (No. 2) Act. <BR /> <BR />Today's debate is on the Budget Bill. I emphasise that the focus today is on completing the Bill's legislative passage so that we can quickly obtain Royal Assent. Once again, I express my gratitude to the Finance Committee for agreeing to accelerated passage for the Bill. I thank all the Committees and all Members for the scrutiny that they have brought to the process.”
“Providing sustainable public services into the future will require adequate funding from Westminster, as well as substantive reform and meaningful transformation of how we design and deliver our public services. I continue to make the case to the British Government for restoring the stabilisation fund in order to support the Executive's transformation work to make public services fit for now and for the future. <BR /> <BR />Turning back to today's business, the Budget Bill provides legislative cover for the Vote on Account for 2026-27, which was also laid on 16 February 2026. The spring Supplementary Estimates and the Vote on Account were debated and agreed by the Assembly on Monday 23 February 2026. That was a valuable debate, and I thank all Members for their time and contribution to the process.”
“Just before Christmas, the Department of Health in England was bailed out to the tune of £1 billion because it was facing huge challenges in delivering front-line public services, similar to the challenges that the Executive face here. When we debate our public finances, which we should debate and scrutinise often, we have to do so in the context of the pressures that other jurisdictions face, which are similar to ours. <BR /> <BR />The loss of the £520 million stabilisation fund, which was provided in the restoration package for 2024-25 and 2025-26, has made the task of delivering front-line public services and balancing the Budget almost impossible.”
“Members will also be aware that, following negotiations, the Treasury has recognised the significant challenges that the Executive face and has agreed to provide the Executive with a reserve claim of £400 million in resource DEL for 2025-26. While the additional funding is welcome and will provide assistance to the Executive, the reality is that severe pressures on Executive finances remain. <BR /> <BR />The claim of financial mismanagement has been blown out of the water by last week's announcement of the £380 million in resource DEL and £9 million in capital. Why was that money provided? It was because councils in England could no longer endure the scale of SEN pressures that they were facing in delivering those services. Similar pressures exist here.”
“<BR /> <BR />You will not hear any of those issues being discussed or debated on many of our media channels or being highlighted in some of our newspapers, but those are facts. Those are facts that the Executive, despite all their challenges, financial and otherwise, have delivered since the Assembly was restored in February 2024. I welcome media scrutiny and media debate, but it should be balanced and should reflect the range of matters that the Executive have had to deal with, their successes and their failings, over the past two years. <BR /> <BR />Members will be aware from my oral statement last week that the Executive will receive an additional £380 million in resource departmental expenditure limit (DEL) over the next three years and £9 million in capital following the spring statement.”
“Those include: delivering 200,000 additional elective activities in the health service, meaning that people are getting the care that they need; 19,000 families benefiting from the childcare subsidy scheme, leading to £19 million in savings for families and supporting parents to return to work or education; £105 million in the 2025-26 Budget to DFI specifically for water and waste water infrastructure to support investment in capacity, which has helped to unlock more than 5,000 extra properties across the North; investment in the Magee campus, facilitating year-on-year growth in student numbers, increasing access to higher education in the city and surrounding area, supporting regionally balanced growth; pay awards delivered for health workers, teachers, police officers, civil servants and NI Water workers; £100 million of funding earmarked in the 2025-26 Budget for new social homes, plus an additional £38·9 million in additional funding to supplement that; and £10·5 million to help people with disabilities adapt their homes, ensuring that their living spaces meet their needs and support greater independence.”
“Today's Final Stage debate concludes the financial legislative process for the Budget Bill in the Assembly. The Bill provides the legislative authority for the final expenditure plans of Departments and other bodies, as set out in the spring Supplementary Estimates 2025-26, which were laid in the Assembly on Monday 16 February 2026. As we come to the end of the legislative process around this year's Budget Bill, and with our thoughts on the upcoming multi-year Budget, it is worthwhile to reflect again on the achievements up to this point. <BR /> <BR />As I have said in previous debates, while the Executive face many financial challenges, there have been some notable achievements since the Executive were restored in February 2024.”
“I thank Members for their comments and thank the Committee for its work. As Members have said, the scheme is worth reinstating for those living in isolated rural communities who depend on available ATMs. We all appreciate the difficulties that are encountered in those communities from any measure that could lead to a reduction in the availability of ATMs, especially at this time. The Executive wish to do all that they can to support people in rural areas. <BR /> <BR />I am content to take any extension of the scheme on board and will ask officials to look at that. I want to reassure myself and other Members that we are not giving a simple tax relief to banks and that any actions that we take are to the benefit of local communities that use such facilities. I commend the order to the Assembly.”
“Article 3 revokes the previous end date for the scheme that was set out in last year's legislation. I commend the order to Assembly colleagues.”
“As in previous years, the scheme will not apply to ATMs that are located in and valued as part of banks or building societies. Such ATMs tend to be valued as part of that property. The current revenue loss associated with the measure is a modest cost of around £30,000 in rates revenue forgone. That is overshadowed by the volume of Executive support provided elsewhere to businesses at present. The outlay brings with it wider benefits in the area in which the policy applies, however. <BR /> <BR />I will turn to the statutory rule (SR) itself. Article 1 of the order sets out the citation, the commencement date and the interpretation of provisions. Article 2 provides for the extension to 1 April 2027 of the date before which the scheme must end.”
“Given the decline in the number of banks and the need to maintain access to cash in our local communities, that is especially important. <BR /> <BR />The legislation extends the scheme until the end of March 2027. As things stand, just 30 ATMs are eligible for the exemption. That small number is as a result of a Supreme Court judgement in England on how ATMs are to be valued. That decision has seen the number of stand-alone ATM assessments be reduced and an increase in the number of ATMs included in the overall rateable assessment of the attached property. For the year ahead, the scheme will continue to apply to stand-alone ATMs that are individually valued on the valuation list, such as those located outside petrol stations or on main streets.”
“The order extends the rural ATMs rates exemption scheme for the 2026-27 rating year. The scheme is now a mainstay of the non-domestic rating system, with an underlying policy objective of encouraging and sustaining the provision of rateable ATMs in rural areas. <BR /> <BR />When introducing the measures in 2024, my predecessor took the view that the policy objectives behind the scheme remained worthy, which is a view that I share. Previous research and analysis, along with feedback received from stakeholders during the previous rating reviews, also confirmed the value of the scheme, despite its modest nature, with an assessment of the scheme showing that it contributes to helping retain existing ATMs in rural areas.”
“I am conscious that the Speaker does not want us to go back to the previous debate, but comments that I made in the previous debate are relevant to this: I have set aside £10 billion in the draft Budget to enhance small business rates relief. There is, therefore, a plan, a strategy and a way forward. I suppose that the leader of the Opposition has to find fault in these matters — he does not have to, but he does — and has to caveat his comments. His proposal appears to be that, if I give him more public money, he will come forward with proposals and solutions to all our issues. I suggest that a better use of public funds would be for his Members to spend less time tabling questions about why it is raining and more time tabling questions about what the Budget entails. <BR /> <BR />I commend the motion.”
“I thank Members for their comments, and, again, I thank the Committee for its work on the scheme. The scheme is a positive contribution to our local economy. It supports many businesses in those first few difficult years, as they get themselves established on the high street or into the market, and it allows them to build up that business and move forward. <BR /> <BR />Mr O'Toole challenged me and said that we have no strategic direction in relation to our rates. This is part of a broader intervention that we make in our rates process, worth a quarter of a billion pounds. It directly supports businesses to enter the market or to remain competitive in the market.”
“At its meeting last Wednesday, the Committee agreed that the statutory rule should be affirmed by the Assembly. Article 1 of the order is the citation and commencement. Article 2 provides for the amendment of article 31D of the Rates (Northern Ireland) Order 1977, importantly substituting a new end date of 31 March 2027 for the scheme. <BR /> <BR />I look forward to Members' comments. I commend the Rates (Temporary Rebate) (Amendment) Order 2026 to the Assembly.”
“I view it as a policy that will make a stable and substantive difference, helping to grow businesses, particularly in our town centres and on our arterial routes. Critically, it will moderate the business rate liability in the difficult first few years of trading, providing some certainty for businesses about their overheads and helping them to budget. It will also help them to adjust to paying full rates in due course, and it will grow the tax base in the medium to long term. Meanwhile, in the short term, the Department will generate the same revenue as it would have, had the property remained vacant. <BR /> <BR />I will turn to the statutory rule. The Finance Committee has been advised on the detail of the SR, and its members indicated, at SL1 stage in December, that they were content for the scheme to be continued until 31 March 2027.”
“Since the introduction of the scheme, 113 new and expanding businesses have availed themselves of the support, breathing new life into previously empty premises and, in the case of new premises, creating new jobs and employment in local towns. <BR /> <BR />In November, I signalled my intention to develop a second phase to build on the scheme's success. In the new rating year, I will bring forward consultation proposals on a business growth accelerator that will defer increased rates for businesses that are expanding their premises. In the meantime, today's extension will mean that Land and Property Services (LPS) will be able to accept new applications until 31 March 2027. Crucially, it will allow the scheme to become a longer-term part of our wider package of business rate supports.”