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Business Rate Supplements Bill

I have Amendments 52 and 55 in this group. Amendment 52 would amend Clause 16, which relates to the interaction with the BID levy. Clause 16(1) provides for setting rules for the interaction. My amendment would require consultation with those liable for it and the billing authority—which may be different from the levying authority for BRS—because we do not agree that there should be an automatic offset; there are likely to entirely different objectives for a BID and BRS in a particular area. Not everybody paying the BID contribution will be liable for BRS, but, before the levying authority comes to a view, it should undertake a consultation. I have tabled Amendment 55 in the hope that the Minister can explain "consistently" in the context of Clause 16(4). We are told that the rules must, ""apply consistently in relation to BID levies"." Does that mean all BIDs within the levying authority’s area? I do not know that they can, because subsection (4)(c) requires application uniformly throughout the area. My imagination ran out over "consistently".