The over sixties will soon be able to postpone paying rates bills.
From April the Department of Finance will allow older people who own their own home to roll up their rates payments until they die or sell the family home.
There will be an interest charge on the accumulating debt. It will normally be 1%t lower than the Bank of England base rate.
However it won't go below a floor of 1%.
The scheme is principally designed to help those pensioners with low incomes but who live in large houses. That is asset rich but cash poor.
What's on offer is a form of borrowing. Older people may be reluctant to take on new debt. On the other hand the interest charge is way below market rates. Those who look at the proposition closely may well find it very tempting indeed.
Meanwhile the Government has allowed Northern Ireland businesses to defer tax bills totalling over a hundred million pounds.
The Business Payments Support Service operated by Revenue and Customs allows companies to put off paying tax, vat or national insurance.
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