Scotland's Deputy First Minister, John Swinney, is to give councils north of the border the power to cut business rates from the end of this month.

He announce the decision in his speech to the SNP's annual conference in Aberdeen. 

Business rates are set centrally in Scotland and retained locally, but Mr Swinney wants greater flexibility. 

From 31 October, Scotland's 32 local authorities will be able to cut rates to try and boost economic activity. 

They will be able to apply any changes in particular geographical areas or to chosen business sectors. 

Labour MSP Hugh Henry asks the Scottish government whether Renfrewshire Council or any local authority that decides to reduce its business rates would have to pay an equivalent amount to the Scottish Government.  

Mr Swinney says LLBT tax revenues were £133m in the first six months of operation. 

The finance secretary says there is an unresolved issue affecting the first six months which may impact on this figure. 

He says the Scottish government estimated LLBT revenues of £381m in the course of the entire financial year and he thinks that is still on track.

Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT) replaced UK Stamp Duty Land Tax (SDLT) in Scotland from 1 April 2015. 

LBTT is a tax applied to residential and commercial land and buildings transactions where a chargeable interest is acquired. , external

Revenue Scotland administers LBTT with support from Registers of Scotland (RoS). 

The structure of LBTT is designed so that the charge is more proportionate to the actual price of the property. The percentage rate for each band in LBTT is applied only to the part of the price over the relevant threshold and up to the next threshold.

Scottish Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser asks the Scottish government how much it has collected in Land and Buildings Transaction Tax.

Mr Swinney says Scottish government officials have been working closely with ONS officials on the European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010). 

The Finance Secretary says that work is ongoing and he is awaiting ONS decisions. 

He says a tremendous amount of effort is going on to allow constructions to get underway. 

On the issue of the classification of universities, they are autonomous and there is nothing that will lead to re-classification by the ONS says the minister. 

The European System of Accounts 2010 (ESA 2010) has a specific category of payments to government called compulsory social contributions., external These are payments made to government associated with social security schemes, such as unemployment benefit and pensions. In the UK accounts this category includes all National Insurance Contributions. 

Labour MSP Malcolm Chisholm asks what discussions the Scottish government has had with the Office for National Statistics regarding the implications of the European System of Accounts 

Labour MSP Margaret McCulloch asks how the Scottish government is supporting sustainable economic growth in towns.

The first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, is to be a castaway on BBC radio 4's Desert Island Discs programmes. 

Ms Sturgeon is due to appear on Sunday the 15th of November, as she prepares to mark her first anniversary as head of the Scottish government. 

Image source, Reuters

Her predecessor, Alex Salmond, former prime minister Gordon Brown and former Liberal Democrat leaders Ming Campbell and Charles Kennedy are among the Scottish politicians to have featured in previous editions.   

Labour MSP Margaret McCulloch asks how the Scottish government is supporting sustainable economic growth in towns. 

Mr Swinney says the volume of transactions continues to increase, with more properties sold than last year and there is no doubt the Scottish government's actions have assisted this.

The finance secretary says the volumes are still below pre-recession levels and says the government will do more. 

Labour MSP Ken Macintosh asks if Mr Swinney agrees there is a "housing crisis". 

Mr Swinney says when the Scottish government's capital budget is reduced by 25% that leads to constraints.

House sales picked up across Scotland last month following a "modest" rise in the number of properties coming on to the market, according to a report. 

Agreed sales rose throughout Scotland in September, with 32% more chartered surveyors reporting an increase. 

Image source, Getty Images

Scotland posted one of the sharpest rises in activity in the UK last month as the British market saw sales growth hit a 16-month high.

The report was compiled by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. 

Its latest UK residential market survey suggested the stronger sales trend was broadly reflective of an upturn in demand, which has been visible in the Scottish market for much of the year. 

SNP MSP Willie Coffey asks what action the Scottish government is taking to help stimulate the housing market. 

Ms Marra goes on to ask Finance Secretary John Swinney about a £59m black hole, combing cuts to NHS Tayside and Dundee City Council. 

Mr Swinney says the Scottish government's budget has been cut by 10% in real terms and the local government settlement is fair. 

Labour MSP Jenny Marra asks the Scottish government when the finance secretary last discussed funding for public services with Dundee City Council. 

Welcome back and coming up this afternoon in the chamber........

Scottish Labour will lead a debate on its plans to restore the money lost from tax credit cuts to working families, from 2.40pm.  

But first portfolio questions allows MSPs to quiz finance ministers this week.

That concludes our coverage of the finance committee.

Image source, bbc

Prof. Bell says there was a considerable shift in tax policy in the '80s. 

He says high marginal tax rates were cut and there was an increase in indirect taxation, so the overall burden only fell a bit.

It is easier to collect indirect taxes, like VAT, than it is to collect income tax, says the academic.

The shift favoured the rich than the poor.

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is "still failing UK tax payers", a group of MPs has said.

It accused HMRC of only answering half the phone calls to its customer care centre, and failing to carry out enough prosecutions.

Members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said, external customer service was so bad that it could be affecting tax collection.

HMRC denied that, and said it had now recruited 3,000 more staff to help.

Image source, bbc

In 2011-12, HMRC answered 74% of calls from the public, but by the start of 2015, it only answered 50% of them, the MPs said.

Meg Hillier, chair of the PAC, said HMRC must "rapidly improve its customer service, previously described by the PAC as abysmal and now even worse".

The MPs said HMRC had ignored some of their previous recommendations.