Please read this article published by the BBC it gives a good insight, into why they are taxing owners of empty business properties.
(The Following is from https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj4q9gwdqlvo
Angus CochraneBBC Scotland Published 27 November 2025
The Non-Domestic Rates (Scotland) Act 2020 was supposed to allow local authorities to tax owners of empty business properties.
However, a technical flaw in the legislation - which failed to account for laws dating back to 1956 - meant that it did not actually give councils the legal authority to levy the rates.
Up to 34,000 properties are thought to have been affected, and ministers have legislate retrospectively to avoid having to issuing refunds of up to £400m.
So The bill to fix the mistake was passed by 84 votes to 24
Public Finance Minister Ivan McKee apologised to MSPs for the mistake, which he said "should not have happened".
He said the problem was missed by government lawyers as well as parliament, councils and tax experts due to the complexity of the law. )
Health physical and mental
Why did the Scottish government vote to bring in legalised extortion and slavery? Using the non domestic rates to extort money, from people that own empty properties, that have no income of any type.
This rates charge for empty properties has already given a number of people health issues both physical and mental. The possibility of bankruptcy and the threat they will lose everything as they have to pay this forever.
I personally have been experiencing insomnia and anxiety for several weeks now and it’s taking a toll on my family life as my wife has had cancer as well after retiring from the NHS.
The cost of None Domestic Rates
The Scottish Government and Councillors get in each year 3.5 billion from none domestic rates as they are easy targets, for them to extort never ending money, no matter what the cost to the individuals or companies involved. This revaluation that is going on now is also blatant misuse of political power with the increased amounts of money.
None domestic rates covers shops, offices, pubs and hotels, warehouses, factories and many more but they are all at the mercy of Councils , Government , electric companies , water copanies and insurance companies and the trades men they have to employ.
Electricians , builders, plumbers are lucky , they can set their own charges and have no overheads like rates , water rates, building insurance, electricity or maintains costs, also the government is unable to impose tax rates on the companies on the Internet, as they can move anywhere, in the world and still operate.
The rates spiral. When a property closes now, an individual or company has to pay the rates out of their own money. They will then have to increase the rent or increase their prices, to try to recover the money extorted from them by this tax policy on empty properties. So the rent for the property goes up and as the rates for the property are linked to the rent values so does the amount of money to be paid in rates.
Also the VAT. As the amount of goods sold to cover the tax rates increases, so does the VAT, and increasing costs to everybody again.
What is a building
Actually a building is not a Business. It is a container or entity that is used to Accommodate or enable a Business to function, any building can be modified to serve any amount of functions like a hotel, factory, shop, chemist or house and numerous other uses. The only time a building is a Business is when it is rented out for a profit and like any Business pays tax on profits after all costs and reduction are taken.
A empty building has cost’s only insurance and the imposed mandatory electrical connection and water and has no income of any kind, therefore it is not a Business as defined in a dictionary. It has no commercial activity; a commercial or industrial operation; a commercial or industrial concern , while empty.
Chambers dictionary definition of (Business): employment; a trade; profession or occupation; task or errand incumbent or undertaken; a matter requiring attention; dealings, commercial activity; a commercial or industrial operation; a commercial or industrial concern; the level of commercial activity; one’s concerns or affairs; a matter or affair; a complex , difficult or awkward matter or affair; action as distinguished from dialogue; thing used quite indefinitely, sort of thing
Chambers dictionary definition of (Business end): the end or part of something that actually functions or does the work
This scenario describes someone in financial distress who must work involuntarily to pay a tax, with no alternatives and threats of legal action. (Slavery)
Non-domestic rates tax: slavery is a complex question that touches on legal definitions, human rights, and socioeconomic realities. The scenario describes someone in bankruptcy or financial distress who is forced into labour to pay a non-domestic rates tax imposed on them while having personal freedoms denied and lost because they have to work to pay the tax. The core question is whether this constitutes slavery.
First, it is necessary to consider how modern legal systems define slavery. The provided excerpts clearly establish that slavery involves ownership claims over a person, complete control, and a lack of freedom to change conditions. The key differentiator seems to be whether the state is asserting ownership rights over the individual in some way.
The scenario describes involuntary labour without compensation specifically for tax repayment. This resembles debt bondage, which the excerpts mention as a form of modern slavery when it is "imposed by the state." That's a crucial point—if the state is enforcing this arrangement, it might meet slavery criteria. Bankruptcy laws in most developed countries actually provide protection against such scenarios; they are designed to prevent exactly this kind of creditor abuse. But this situation seems to describe a case where those protections have failed or do not exist.
The psychological aspect here is important too: the financial distress, their health and mental health, and the denial of personal freedoms as they have to pay this tax by working or by some other menace suggest concern about the human impact beyond just legal definitions.
Many work programs exist where individuals voluntarily work to repay debts while retaining rights. The coercion element and lack of alternatives seem to be what make this scenario particularly troubling. As the non-domestic rates tax is imposed, there is no form of income from the property and it is used to extort money.
The answer here needs to balance the strict legal definition with the practical realities described. While not identical to chattel slavery, the combination of state coercion, lack of payment (as they are only working to cover the imposed tax), and freedom restrictions they suffer in having to work, plus the threat of ending up in a sheriff court, creates conditions that share concerning similarities with modern slavery definitions.
Based on the provided excerpts, slavery is defined as a condition in which individuals are treated as property, subjected to complete control, and deprived of personal freedoms. Key characteristics include:
Ownership or possession: A person treated as property (to work for money) (chattel) by another entity.
Coercion: Forced labour without freedom to refuse or change conditions. (They can't change the conditions or refuse to pay, so they lose their freedom by having to work.)
Lack of autonomy: Denial of fundamental rights (e.g., movement, choice). (Their movement is lost as they have to work to pay the tax, and they have no choice over it; if they do not pay they will end up in the sheriff court.)
Thus, while the described scenario resembles debt bondage (a recognized form of slavery), its classification depends on jurisdictional safeguards. If protections are absent, it may meet slavery criteria. (There are no protections from this enforced non-domestic rates tax.)
Ownership/Control State imposes tax, forcing people into labour to repay it without alternatives.
Partial alignment: State acts as an authority demanding repayment but does not explicitly claim "ownership" of the person.
Coercion Labour is involuntary; refusal triggers legal threats and (sheriff court).
Direct alignment: Freedom to refuse is absent.
Lack of Autonomy Personal freedoms (e.g., movement, choice) are denied due to compulsory work. Direct alignment: Forced labour restricts autonomy.
Key Conclusion
The scenario resembles debt bondage, which is classified as slavery when imposed by the state (excerpts explicitly highlight this).
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