As announced in the 2014 Autumn Statement, the government is conducting a broad, structural review of business rates to ensure that they are suitable for a 21st century economy. A consultation paper, Business rates review: terms of reference and discussion paper, was published on 16 March 2015. For more information see Legal update, HM Treasury publishes consultation paper on business rates review.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.103, 1.110 and 2.181.)

To encourage business growth, the government has announced pilot schemes enabling the selected pilot areas to retain 100% of business rates growth that exceeds the expected forecasts. The pilot schemes will run in Cambridgeshire, Peterborough, Greater Manchester and Cheshire East and will begin in April 2015.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.111 and 2.28.)

Recognising the importance of local newspapers to the communities they serve, the government intends to consult on whether to introduce business rates relief for local newspapers in England.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.114 and 2.182.)

Local authorities have a discretion to grant business rates relief in certain situations (section 47, Local Government Finance Act 1988 as amended by section 69 of the Localism Act 2011). As part of the initiatives to support the 'sharing economy' (enabling individuals and businesses to make the most of their assets, resources, time and skills), the government is encouraging local authorities to use these business rates discretionary relief powers for shared workspaces and makerspaces.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.193 and 2.240.)

The government has made the following announcements about enterprise zones:

Subject to certain conditions, from April 2015 to March 2020, businesses in the following enterprise zones will be able to claim 100% enhanced capital allowances on qualifying expenditure:

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.156, 1.169, 1.175 and 2.30.)

As announced in the 2014 Autumn Statement, from 1 January 2015, business contributions (which include cash and services) to flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM) projects will be fully deductible for corporation tax and income tax purposes. For background to this measure, see Legal update, 2014 Autumn Statement: business tax implications: Tax relief for contributions to flood defence projects.

However, the draft legislation, which was published on 10 December 2014 (see Legal update, Draft Finance Bill 2015 legislation: key business tax measures: Tax relief for contributions to flood defence), will be amended to expand the exceptions to a "disqualifying benefit", the receipt of which will result in a deduction for the contribution being denied.

This measure will be included in the first (pre-general election) Finance Bill of 2015 due to be published on 24 March 2015 (see Legal update, Finance Bill 2015 to be published on 24 March).

(See Overview of Tax Legislation and Rates 2015, paragraph 1.9.)

The government will bring forward some of the flood defence spending which it announced in December 2014. It has also added additional schemes to the list of those which will receive government funding (in whole or part). There is no increase in the overall budget of £2.3 billion.

It is difficult to correlate the list of accelerated projects against the original December 2014 list (for more details of the December proposals, see Legal update, Flood defence projects to receive government funding). In many cases the government contribution is less than the full project cost, which suggests that the project can only progress if top up finance is available from other sources (perhaps the local authority, industry or private homeowners). Buyers or prospective tenants of properties in the areas which will be protected by these projects may be reassured that the intention is to reduce their flood risk more quickly but should make further enquiries to identify the precise timetable.

The government has also issued a revised version of the Environment Agency Long Term Investment Scenarios to reflect the acceleration proposals.

(Budget Report, paragraph 1.164.)

The government will implement a new commercially-driven approach to property asset management across the central government estate, based on departments paying market-level rents for the freehold assets they own. A new central body (or bodies) will own and manage relevant property assets. The reform will be operational from March 2017.

The Ministry of Defence will introduce a similar charging mechanism within its existing estate management organisation. Appropriate charging principles will also be developed for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s overseas estate.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.84 and 1.85.)

The government has announced the Help to Buy: ISA. First-time buyers who choose to save through a Help to Buy: ISA will receive a government bonus, which will be calculated and paid when they buy their first home.

The government bonus:

The maximum government contribution is capped at £3,000 on £12,000 of savings. The maximum monthly saving is £200. The bonus will represent 25% of the amount saved, so the government will provide a £50 bonus for every £200 saved.

Accounts are limited to one per person rather than one per home, so those buying together can both receive a bonus. Savers will have access to their own money and will be able to withdraw funds from their account if they need them for another purpose.

Accounts can be opened through banks and building societies for a period of four years from the start date of the scheme. The government intends the scheme to be available from autumn 2015. The operational details will be finalised following discussions with industry.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.228 and 2.80 and HM Treasury: Help to Buy: ISA: scheme outline (March 2015).)

The March 2015 Budget sets out further information on the government's commitment to house building. The government has announced that it:

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.137, 1.139-1.141, 1.171, 2.31, 2.33 and 2.54-2.59.)

The Council of Mortgage Lenders and Which? have published their interim report on mortgage lenders’ plans to standardise and improve the transparency of their fees and charges.

The government expects most lenders to have made the necessary changes by the end of 2015.

For more information, see CML: Joint Progress Report (18 March 2015).

(Budget Report, paragraph 2.221.)

The government has announced its intention to make it easier for an individual to sub-let a room in private residential rented accommodation by:

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.193 and 2.233-2.235.)

In the 2014 Autumn Statement, the government announced £15 million for a new Listed Places of Worship: Roof Repair Fund. The government will now provide a further £40 million to this fund to support vital roof repairs in 2015-17.

(Budget Report, paragraph 2.291.)

To reduce planning delays, the government will consult on devolving planning powers over sightlines and wharves to the Mayor of London to accelerate the provision of new homes.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.173 and 2.50.)

The government will update its planning guidance to clarify that it should be possible for owners of non-residential properties to rent out their existing parking spaces without requiring planning permission, provided there are no substantive planning concerns.

(Budget Report, paragraph 2.239.)

In the next Parliament, the government proposes to consult on bringing planning notification arrangements for deep geothermal planning in line with those for onshore oil and gas planning applications. This will mean that geothermal companies will not have to notify landowners individually about planning applications to undertake geothermal activities beneath their land.

(Budget Report, paragraph 2.256.)

Compulsory purchase is a legal function that allows certain public bodies to acquire land, for a specific purpose, if the landowner is not willing to sell by agreement. While it might be possible to acquire land for small-scale projects by agreement, site assembly for major schemes will usually mean the parties need to consider using compulsory purchase powers.

For a guide to Practical Law Property’s materials on compulsory purchase, see Compulsory purchase orders: toolkit.

The March 2015 Budget launches a consultation into Improving the compulsory purchase process to make it clearer, faster and fairer for all parties. Its aim is to bring forward more brownfield land for development. The consultation closes on 9 June 2015.

The government has also published updated, draft guidance on Compulsory purchase process and the Crichel Down rules to reflect legislative changes and case law since 2004. The government welcomes comments on the draft guidance in terms of its format and content by 9 June 2015.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.142 and 2.247.)

The government will increase support to farmers by increasing the period over which they can average their profits for income tax from two to five years from April 2016. This new flexibility recognises that uncontrollable factors, such as the weather and global commodity prices, lead to volatile profits for farmers, making it difficult to plan for the future. A consultation on how the averaging will be implemented will be held later in 2015, and the measure will be enacted in (post-election) Finance Bill.

(Budget Report, paragraph 1.118.)

The government will extend the rural fuel duty rebate scheme to 17 areas of the UK mainland, following the approval of the extension of the scheme by the Council of the European Union. From 1 April 2015 retailers in eligible areas can register for a five pence per litre fuel duty discount. The scheme recognises that motorists in some rural areas pay high pump prices in comparison to the rest of the UK.

For details on the Fuel Rebate Scheme, see HMRC: Revenue and Customs Brief 3 (2015): Rural Fuel Duty relief scheme.

(Budget Report, paragraphs 1.218 and 2.157.)

The government will also take further action to support the delivery of broadband in rural areas, including looking to raise the Universal Service Obligation, the legal entitlement to a basic service, from dial-up speeds to 5 Mbps broadband, and subsidising the costs of installing superfast capable satellite services.

For details on rural broadband speeds, see Legal update, Ofcom publishes eleventh report on broadband speeds.

(Budget Report, paragraph 1.123.)

The government has announced a £1 million fund to support Local Enterprise schemes that promote growth in the forestry industry. This is following the success of the industry led initiative Roots to Prosperity, where the forestry industry, Local Authorities and LEPs collaborated to support growth and job opportunities in the forestry sector in the North of England.

(Budget Report, paragraph 2.257.)