Expanded Retail Discount
Dear Shropshire Council,
REQUEST FOR INFORMATION UNDER THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT 2000.
In accordance with the provisions specified within the above Act I hereby request the following information.
Required Information; - A list of all hereditaments where you have granted EXPANDED RETAIL DISCOUNT for the 2020/21 rate year.
This request relates to business rates but please only refer us to data available for download on your website if it contains the requested EXPANDED RETAIL DISCOUNT data.
• Property Reference Number (also known as Billing Authority Reference Number) of the property on which the charge is made. This is not the Rate Demand or Account Number.
• Current Rateable Value
• Account holder name
• Property address
• The billing address (where different to the property address)
Please provide the information in an electronic, spreadsheet format ideally excel. The Act requires that a response be provided within a period of 20 working days from the date hereof.
This request for information falls within the parameters of the Act but if you require clarification on any of the points above or should you wish to discuss this further then please do not hesitate to contact me. The requested information passes all required public interest tests and other requirements and is not exempt from disclosure.
Yours sincerely
Richard Roberts
Dear Mr Roberts
Thank you for your request for information received on 28/04/2020. We are
currently processing your request in accordance with the relevant
legislation.
Your request is for information about expanded retail discount.
- This is a summary only and full details have been sent to the team
providing the response.
- If you feel the information is inaccurate or requires amendment, please
notify us as soon as possible using the contact details provided below.
Please note:
The Council has been facing unprecedented challenges this year. Firstly,
in response to the flooding in February and now in responding to the
coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. During this time, resources may have to
be diverted away from usual compliance or information rights work. The
council acknowledges that it can’t extend statutory timescales of requests
and everyone is doing their best to meet these. However, priority may have
to be given to other areas, eg the safeguarding of vulnerable people,
during this extraordinary period.
The Information Commissioner’s Office has blogged about their approach to
requests during this time: [1]blog
The Information Commissioner’s Office has released a statement about Data
Protection and the Coronavirus here: [2]statement
Yours sincerely
Information Governance Team
Shropshire Council
Shirehall
Abbey Foregate
SHREWSBURY
SY2 6ND
Tel: 01743 252179 / 252774 / 252747
Email: [Shropshire Council request email]
Web: [3]www.shropshire.gov.uk/access-to-information
[4]For information about Coronavirus click here/image below
[5][IMG]
References
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3. http://www.shropshire.gov.uk/access-to-i...
4. https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
5. https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
Dear Mr Roberts
At the current time, information relating to businesses applying for, or
in receipt of, Expanded Retail Relief, including those receiving it under
the government's extended scheme, is considered to be exempt from
disclosure under Section 31(1)(a) of the Freedom of Information Act – Law
enforcement. This exemption applies because the release of this
information would prejudice the prevention or detection of crime. There
has recently been an increase in the amount of fraudulent activity
associated with the application of Expanded Retail Relief Relief and the
council has therefore concluded that disclosure of this information into
the public domain is not in the public interest at the current time.
In accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000 this letter is a
refusal notice to your request. If you are dissatisfied with the way your
request has been handled, you may ask for an internal review. Please
contact The Information Governance Team, Workforce & Transformation,
Shropshire Council, Shirehall, Shrewsbury, SY2 6ND or email on
[1][Shropshire Council request email] if you wish to request a review.
If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review, you have
the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner for a
decision. The Information Commissioner can be contacted at: Information
Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9
5AF. You can find more details at [2]www.ico.org.uk or by telephone on
0303 123 1113.
James Walton
Director of Finance, Governance and Assurance (Section 151 Officer)
Finance, Governance and Assurance
Shropshire Council
Shirehall
Abbey Foregate
Shrewsbury
SY2 6ND
Email: [3][email address]
Web [4]www.shropshire.gov.uk
_______________________________________________________________________________
Chief Financial Officer (Section 151 Officer): Shropshire Council
Pension Scheme Administrator: Shropshire County Pension Fund
Treasurer: Shropshire and Wrekin Fire Authority
Treasurer: West Mercia Energy
Treasurer: Marches LEP
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