FINANCE Minister Máirtín Ó Muilleoir has told the Assembly that he will bring forward proposals in a bid to address the small business rate relief scheme in Fermanagh-south Tyrone.

During Question Time on Monday, SDLP MLA Richie McPhillips asked the Minister to outline if he has plans to look at the issue which he described as “a major concern” in his constituency.

In response, Minister Ó Muilleoir said: “He has voiced concerns about the grass-roots retail economy in Fermanagh in particular, and the pressures that it is under. He can be assured that I share those concerns. It is my intention to give as much help as possible to small businesses. I would like to bring forward proposals which are perhaps a little bit bolder.

“He will be aware that I recently met the chief executive of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council and he pointed out a site beside Brewster Park which has been empty for 20 years and talked about a productive economic asset being lost,” he said.

Minister Ó Muilleoir offered the Fermanagh-south Tyrone MLA this assurance: “Without small businesses and small to medium-sized enterprises we do not have an economy, so we need to have prosperous main streets, prosperous towns and prosperous cities. The ‘spray and pray’ approach of business rate relief for small businesses is not making enough difference.”

In a follow up question, Mr. McPhillips asked: “Can the Minister also confirm whether, as part of the proposals of reform for non-domestic rates, he will impose rates on charity shops?”

“It is not my intention to impose rates on charity shops. I am aware of the difficulty it presents to us when a landlord who may be unscrupulous and who does not want to pay half rates, there is 50 per cent relief on empty premises, so he or she decides to put a charity in and therefore avoids the rate obligation while charging the charity rent. There is a problem in some of our busiest commercial main streets, and we need to prevent landlords from doing that,” he said.