Indeed, the Court of Appeal in 2001 said "The law of rating is statutory and ancient, going back even before the Poor Relief Act 1601".
Rates on residential property were based on the nominal rental value, reassessed periodically in revaluations.
[3] Rates in England and Wales in 1990 were briefly replaced with the Community Charge (so called "poll tax"), a fixed tax per head that was the same for everyone within a council area, a figure that could differ greatly per local authority.
The rateable value of domestic properties was recorded in valuation rolls, which provide an important historical source, as they record the name of the head of the household for every home in Scotland on set years; usually at five yearly intervals.
[4] All transfers of property ownership in Scotland are recorded in the Register of Sasines or the Scottish Land Registry.
[5] Domestic rates were a more stable income source for local government as they are based entirely on property values which provide greater financial certainty to councils - reducing their cost of borrowing.
Evasion of domestic rates was also more difficult in Scotland than in England as property ownership in Scotland can be more easily proven as Scots law has required public registration for a transfer of property to be effective since 1694,[6] whereas HM Land Registry is incomplete [7] and a compulsory public declaration is a more recent requirement.
Later physical changes will have a later Material Day but the Antecedent Valuation Date will still be 1 April 2003 for the currency of the 2005 Rating List.
In the present case the owners of Walford House could not in theory or in practice be deprived of the benefit of the mutual rights of support if they failed to repair the roof.