Policy and Consultations:
2025 Consultations - Closed
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The IRRV responds to consultations that are relevant to the membership and profession across all the Institute’s faculties. Most consultations of interest are issued by the UK national governments on legislative matters, but responses can be made to papers emanating from the private and non-profit sectors and from international bodies. This work is undertaken under the guidance of the Law and Research Portfolio Holder. Drafting is developed with the input of the Institute’s Faculty Board members. Issues being consulted upon can often span the interests of two or more Boards; it is a strength of the Institute’s responses that they reflect that wider professional viewpoint.
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Consultation: provisional local government finance settlement 2025 to 26 [England]
This consultation seeks views, in particular from representatives of local government, on proposals for the local government finance settlement for 2025-26. The settlement is an annual process to distribute core resources to local government and consists of grant, council tax and locally retained business rates. Following consultation, the government will determine the final amounts of the Revenue Support Grant, and the section 31 grants distributed alongside the settlement, and their allocations to receiving authorities and the specified body, as part of determining the overall allocation of this year’s settlement made to each local authority in England.
This consultation document, together with accompanying documents including the draft Local Government Finance Report for 2025-26, notifies representatives of local government and members of the public of the government’s proposals for policies across the upcoming settlement. This includes: the general nature of the basis of Revenue Support Grant distribution; the general nature of the basis of the calculation of ‘tariff’ and ‘top up’ payments that form part of the business rates retention system; the determination of the ‘central’ and ‘local share’ of business rates for 2025-26; the general nature of the basis of the distribution of section 31 grants alongside the settlement; and council tax referendum principles set through the settlement process.
On 28 November, the government published a policy statement setting out the government’s intentions for the 2025-26 settlement and the direction of travel to fix the foundations of local government in 2026-27 and beyond. This consultation builds on and invites views on the proposals set out in that statement for 2025-26 only.
The consultation can be found at Consultation: provisional local government finance settlement 2025 to 26 - GOV.UK
The closing date for responses is 15 January 2025.
The IRRV's response can be found here: https://www.irrv.net/documents/weblinks/2025/1/IRRV_Response_Consultation_Prov_LG_Finance_Settlement_2025.pdf
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Consultation on business floorspace statistics published by the Valuation Office Agency [England and Wales]
The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) aimed to improve its statistics to ensure they continue to best meet the needs of users. Following a review of business floorspace statistics, they identified two possible ways to measure and classify floorspace within the statistics. Floorspace could continue to be classified at an overall hereditament level; or floorspace could be measured at a more granular level and aggregated by the use of each section of a hereditament.
The purpose of the consultation was to understand how floorspace statistics are used and therefore which of the two methods will better meet user needs. The document set out the broad differences in the two approaches and invited feedback from users. It is published alongside a Quality Assurance of Administrative Data (QAAD) report which provided more detail on our non-domestic property attribute data, to give users the necessary information to respond.
The consultation could be found here.
The deadline for responses was 30 January 2025.
The IRRV's response can be found at IRRV_Response_Consultation_Floorspace_Statistics_VOA.pdf
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Local audit reform: a strategy for overhauling the local audit system in England [England]
This strategy commited to a series of measures to fix the broken local audit system, including:
- A local audit vision with eight core principles.
- The establishment of a statutory and independent Local Audit Office (LAO), with five strategic responsibilities - coordinating the system, contract management, ownership of the Code of Audit Practice, quality oversight and reporting.
- Mandating audit committees.
The government also consulted on a number of specific proposals as part of this strategy, including:
- Potential additional functions of the new LAO.
- Simplifying financial reporting requirements to ensure they are proportionate.
- Improvements to enhance capacity and capability in the local audit sector, such as the introduction of public provision.
- Strengthening the relationship between local bodies and their auditor.
- Reforming the audit regime.
The paper was found at Local audit reform: a strategy for overhauling the local audit system in England - GOV.UK.
Closing date for responses was 29 January 2025.
The IRRV's response can be found at IRRV_Response_Consultation_Audit_Reform.pdf