Nicola Sturgeon has refused to rule out a staggering £800,000-a-year tax bill for Dundee’s flagship regional sports centre.
Dundee City Council is set to hold crunch talks with finance secretary Derek Mackay after learning the £32 million Caird Park Regional Performance Centre could be hit by the charge.
Scottish Labour MSP Jenny Marra raised the alarm after the Scottish Government confirmed some newly built facilities could be subject to business rates, regardless of whether they are run by arms length external organisations (ALEOs).
Officials decided existing services run by ALEOs — organisations which are formally separate from a local authority but still subject to influence — should continue to be exempt.
However, they ruled “further expansion” is not covered, meaning new facilities, such as the centre in Caird Park, are liable to be hit with large rate demands.
Speaking at First Minister’s Questions yesterday, Ms Marra called on Nicola Sturgeon to “reassure the people of Dundee” and guarantee the centre will be delivered to the city tax free.
“I’m sure the First Minister’s intention cannot be to tax community sports facilities and all the implications that has for public health,” she said.
In her response, Ms Sturgeon said the government “do not want to put burdens on community sports facilities” and confirmed the finance secretary is to hold discussions with the council in respect of the tax bill.
However, she stopped short of offering any assurances the local authority would be shielded from the large tax demand.
A Scottish Government spokesman also refused to rule out the six-figure bill, claiming such decisions “mitigate against further expansion of arm’s-length bodies, and ensure the right balance between rates liabilities and protecting local services”.
North-east MSP Bill Bowman, who serves as the Scottish Conservative’s tax spokesman, accused the SNP of slapping a “prohibitive tax” on the centre before it has even opened.
He added: “The outstanding benefits of such a new facility far outweigh any amount of extra money they are trying to squeeze from it, and I would call on the SNP’s finance secretary to think again about his plans to put a handicap on it.”
Ms Marra vowed to “keep challenging” the Scottish Government to guarantee the centre will be exempt from exorbitant rates.
“Dundee said loud and clear that it wanted a new sports facility. What we didn’t expect was an extra £800,000 tax coming with it,” she said.
Dundee City Council leader John Alexander said the authority was “assessing the situation”.
He added: “Our focus is on ensuring the best outcome for Dundonians and it’s essential that we work together to do just that.”
