Gloucestershire chartered surveyor Ian Sloan has responded to today's national media storm over business rates.

Thirteen leading business groups, including the CBI and British Retail Consortium, have joined together in condemning the new rates.

In response, Mr Sloan (pictured), principle of Bankier Sloan, has identified a number of businesses in Gloucestershire that will pay less and also criticised what he describes as "inaccurate reporting" by the national media.

In an article for Punchline, he writes: "There will be those businesses that see an increase, but the legislation states that as far as revenue collection is concerned the Treasury must produce a scheme which does not provide them with an overall increase in revenue.

Gloucestershire, along with many rural counties, are likely to benefit from the revaluation and particularly the increase in threshold under the long established Small Business Rates Relief scheme.

Looking at a few examples in the northern part of the county:

Cotek Papers Ltd on Draycott Business Park currently have a rateable value of £148,000, and will therefore be paying rates of just under £73,000.

Under the revaluation this rateable value will reduce to £139,000, with rates payable coming down to around £66,000.

In nearby Blockley, The Great Western Arms currently has a rateable value of £11,000, and if Small Business Rates Relief is able to be claimed they will currently be paying approximately £4,400.

The new Valuation List will see their valuation fall to £6,500 and it is highly likely they will therefore be paying no rates.

Further south, Black Jacks Restaurant in Cirencester currently has a rateable value of £9,700 and if the owners are able to claim Small Business Rates Relief will be paying just under £2,900 per annum.

Although the rateable value is to increase to £12,000, if this remains the proprietors only business property they will eventually pay zero rates under the forthcoming revaluation, although this will not kick-in immediately due to transitional arrangements.

In the centre of Gloucester, The Avenue Hotel, Bristol Road, which currently has a rateable value of £39,000 and will pay rates of just over £19,000 a year, will see the rateable value increase to £48,000 with rates payable potentially increasing to £22,700, but this will be on a tapered increase over the next five years.

The Government's Transitional Relief Scheme limits the first years increase to around seven per cent.

Finally, an example closer to home is the offices of Moose Marketing and PR, publishers of Punchline, operating from the Old Fire Station, Barbican Road, Gloucester.

Currently having a rateable value of £6,500 and therefore paying rates this year of just £260, they will see the rateable value increase to £6,900 but will be able to claim 100 per cent relief under the new scheme because the threshold for making such a claim is increasing from £6,000 to £12,000."

Further details on the revaluation and how it may affect your business here in Gloucestershire can be found here.

The latest national report on Small Business Rates Relief, published by chartered surveyors Bankier Sloan, which looks in more detail at the implementation of the Small Business Rates Relief scheme, including examples of the refunds available going back for the last six financial years can be found here .

For more information from Bankier Sloan, visit www.centre-p.co.uk.