Commission on Local Tax Reform


The Commission on Local Tax Reform was a cross-party group set up by the Scottish Government in 2015, tasked with examining alternatives to the Council Tax. The commission was co-chaired by Marco Biagi MSP, Local Government Minister and David O’Neill, president of COSLA. It had a remit to look at systems around funding services delivered by local government and also the impact on those who pay tax. The final report Just Change: A New Approach to Local Taxation was published on 14 December 2015.

Background

In November 2014, the Scottish Government announced its intention to set up an independent commission. Proposals for a fairer system of local government finance had been in the SNP’s 2011 manifesto. The commission was announced as part of the first legislative programme introduced by Nicola Sturgeon as Scotland’s First Minister. The Scottish Trades Union Congress welcomed the plans.
The Commission was set up as a cross-party group, although the Conservative party decided not to take part. Each political party was invited to nominate their own representatives, with the selection then being jointly agreed upon by Cosla and the Scottish Government. The membership of the Commission and the proposed timetable for their work was confirmed on 20 February 2015.

Remit

The Commission was to consider:
It was not considering issues relating to national non-domestic rates, commonly known as business rates.

Schedule

The first meeting of the committee was held on 23 February 2015. Submissions of evidence were accepted by the committee until 22 June 2015. The committee produced their final report on 14 December 2015. There were 4,492 respondents to an online survey, the results of which were released ahead of the final report.

Commission membership

There are 13 people appointed to the Commission: