The Scottish Government has launched reviews of the rates revaluation and Scotland’s wider non-domestic rates system.
Deputy First Minister Jenny Gilruth has announced that the Scottish Government will appoint an independent panel to examine the outcome of the recent non-domestic property revaluation, which took effect on 1 April 2026, after businesses raised concerns about inconsistent valuations.
The panel will assess whether there are any anomalies that exist within the revaluation and report within three months of being appointed.
Alongside the revaluation review, ministers have pledged a broader on of Scotland’s non-domestic rates framework, aimed at identifying longer-term reforms to the system.
Scotland Chair of the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Guy Hinks said: “We welcome the promise of quick action to address some of the deeply unfair and perplexing anomalies thrown up by the recent rates revaluation. Simplifying the opaque and overly complex assessors’ system which administers the rates regime reflects what we have been saying for many years.
“The wider review of the rates system is also an opportunity to deliver a quick shot in the arm to the Scottish economy and the small businesses which drive it.”
Desperate for change
BDC Fuels Director Brian Connolly is desperate for things to change. The owner of SLR Forecourt of the Year finalist Londis Ayr Rd Service Station in Dalmellington, as well as a Jet forecourt in Maybole, said rising costs are crippling his businesses.
“The biggest challenge unquestionably is energy bills and non-domestic rates, particularly the rates when you’re getting hammered for nothing.
“We don’t get any reduction. We get no relief in terms of retail because we’re considered a fuel station. So we don’t get any benefits at all from the Scottish Government or discounts. We’re trying to emphasise that we’re more a shop now than a petrol station, but they don’t accept that.”
The lack of support is stifling business growth.
“We have reduced our plans,” said Brian. “Our Dalmellington site refit was planned before all the Ukraine energy issues so we went through with that because it had already been planned. But our investment now will be severely restricted until conditions improve.
“We’ve got quite a large workshop at the back of the Maybole store that we were looking to extend into, which would be a significant investment, but we’re not going to do that at the moment.”
The revaluation has only made matters worse. “I’ve just got a revaluation done recently by the Scottish Government; everything’s just rocketed again. We’ve appealed non-domestic rates on more than one occasion and we’re going to appeal again.”
Brian has been forced to put his prices up as a result. “There’s no question we would like to be more competitive than we are, but when every other bill is going up, your only option is to increase your prices.”
He claimed that the “horrendous” non-domestic rates situation has meant that the business is firefighting, rather than thriving.
“It would be great if the government was encouraging us to invest, but they aren’t,” he said. “We’re treading water, basically.”
