The Cabinet resolved to:
(i) Approve an increase in the rate of relief applied under the 2017/18 Local Discretionary Business Rate Relief Scheme from 5% to 8.5% to ensure that the grant funding is fully utilised to the benefit of local businesses in the current financial year;
(ii) Approve the Local Discretionary Business Rate Relief Scheme for 2018/19, as set out at Appendix A to the report; and
(iii) Authorise the Chief Operating Officer, in consultation with the Cabinet Member for Finance, Growth and Investment, to finalise the Local Discretionary Business Rate Relief Schemes for 2019/20 and 2020/21, including determining the rate of relief to be applied, in line with the principles within the current policy.