Finance minister John O’Dowd has announced a U-turn on the controversial Northern Ireland pub and restaurant rates.
He addressed the media during a planned press conference on Thursday to confirm the move.
Mr O’Dowd says he made the decision on Thursday morning following a series of meetings with hospitality representatives. He said he will monitor the review of the rating process in England for hospitality businesses before restarting Reval.
There has been widespread criticism of the hikes, with Hospitality Ulster chief Colin Neill saying the industry is “both hurt and angry”.
It follows the publication of new rateable values (NAV) for 75,000 non-domestic properties last week by Land & Property Services (LPS).
The draft list has provoked outrage in hospitality circles, where hundreds of businesses face steep rises in their rates bills from April, some more than doubling.
Recap on updates from Mr O’Dowd’s announcement: