To ask the Minister of Finance what consideration he has given to widening the eligibility for the rates relief scheme to include other sectors of the economy; and the associated costings of doing so.

The business rate relief measures which I announced on 11 March are informed by updated expert research from the Ulster University Economic Policy Centre. This research recognised that whereas most sectors of the economy have been impacted by the ongoing crisis, some have been impacted more significantly than others. This work assisted the Executive in its decision on the scale and targeting of rate relief for the coming year, recognising the need to prioritise this support to where the need is greatest, given the considerable cost of doing so. The additional business rate relief in 2020-21 has cost £288m. It is projected that the additional rate relief in 2021-22 will cost a further £230m.