A number of members have been in touch with the TFA to complain about the increasing tendency of local authorities to apply Council Tax surcharges to cottages let in the context of a farm tenancy, with Councils treating those cottages as second homes.  Often, tenant farmers will have cottages let as part of their tenancy agreements which may have previously been occupied by farm workers. However, for whatever reason, those properties are no longer used for that purpose.  Without consent from their landlords to sublet those cottages, they will stand vacant until a solution is found.

TFA Chief Executive, George Dunn, said: “It rubs salt into the wound when a landlord refuses consent for subletting and the local authority then decides to apply a hefty surcharge to the Council Tax for that dwelling. Whilst local authorities have discretion not to impose this surcharge, it is rarely the case that it is made available”. In view of that, the TFA wrote to the Government to argue that there should be a mandatory exemption in situations where tenant farmers cannot let a cottage due to their landlord’s refusal of consent, or where consent is offered on an unreasonable basis.  However, the Local Government Minister, Alison McGovern MP, responded by telling the TFA that, whilst all taxes are kept under review, there are no current plans to change the way in which Council Tax exemptions are administered. Nevertheless, the TFA will continue to press for change.

To view the correspondence between the TFA and the Local Government Minister, click here.