Business Rate Supplements Bill

I make two general points in defence of the amendments. They are about giving local authorities greater freedom to be the place shapers for their area; they are about the politically consensual move towards decentralisation, devolution and localisation; they are about the opportunity that local authorities might have in the future to do more without central government dictating exactly how they are funded. That is the philosophical base to the amendments. It is also worth pointing out that, increasingly, local authorities are acting as partners with local businesses. That sense of mutual mistrust which existed in the past is evaporating, I am pleased to say, in many areas. Protecting local business from local government is perhaps no longer the priority that it might have been years ago. However, with the strength of the alliance that is opposed to the amendment, I fear that I must withdraw it. Amendment 48A withdrawn. Clause 14 agreed.