In addition to the 100 per cent rates cut for 12 months, grants of £10,000 will be made available to small businesses eligible for small business rate relief. Further funds of £25,000 grants to retail, hospitality and leisure businesses operating from smaller premises, will also be available. To enable this, the Government is understood to have written to the EU requesting the lifting of ‘State Aid’ rules. These rules limit the total amount of discretionary state aid, whether from business rates reliefs or any other sources, to a maximum amount of approximately £180,000 over any rolling three-year period. These announcements are a huge relief for many businesses and it brings immediate certainty to the finances of those sectors most affected. However, the discount does not apply to vacant property, and to be eligible, the property must be wholly or mainly used for retail, leisure, or hospitality. This includes, but is not limited to, the following: shops, charity shops, hair and beauty shops, travel agents, dry cleaners, launderettes, car and tool hire, restaurants, takeaways, art galleries, gyms, sports clubs and guest houses. As is so often the case with business rates, there will be grey areas and room for interpretation on what constitutes retail, leisure, or hospitality use. Whether these measures will be sufficient to enable businesses to weather the effects of the virus outbreak remains to be seen, but the government has felt the need to provide more assistance and has acted quickly. The Government has also announced that it is launching a fundamental review of business rates to report in the autumn. The terms of reference for the review are published alongside this budget and a call for evidence will be published in the spring. Daniel Green, of Flude incorporating Garner Wood, is a business rates expert and would be happy to discuss any rating queries. Contact the Chichester Office on 01243 819000, Portsmouth Office on 02392 629000 or Brighton Office on 01273 727070, or visit www.flude.com -- A message from the Editor, Gary Shipton: Thank you for reading this story on our website. But I also have an urgent plea to make of you. In order for us to continue to provide high quality local news on this free-to-read site and in print, please purchase a copy of our newspaper as well. With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on our town centres and many of our valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you buying a copy. Our journalists are highly trained by the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ) and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards anywhere in the world. Our content is universally trusted - as all independent research proves. As Baroness Barran said in a House of Lords debate this week on the importance of journalists: “Not only are they a trusted source of facts, but they will have a role to play in rallying communities and getting the message across about how we can keep ourselves and our families safe, and protect our NHS. Undoubtedly, they have a critical role.” But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis. In return we will continue to forensically cover the local news - not only the impact of the virus but all the positive and uplifting news happening in these dark days. We thank all our readers and advertisers for their understanding and support - and we wish YOU all the best in the coming weeks. Keep safe, and follow the Government advice. Thank you.