Over 70 retail bosses urge chancellor to cut UK business rates

More than 70 UK retailers have called on chancellor Rachel Reeves to cut business rates by 20 percent as part of a push to introduce a ‘Retail Rates Corrector’ in order to help “level the playing field”.

The bosses of the companies, including those of Marks & Spencer, Primark and Tesco, co-signed an open letter coordinated by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) ahead of the government’s impending Autumn Statement, due for publication on October 30.

In it, they requested for Reeves to carry out changes to the business rates levy – property-based tax imposed on businesses – in order to stem the tide of shop closures, with BRC research suggesting that without any cuts 17,000 stores could close over the next decade.

The CEOs have backed the BRC’s proposal to implement a 20 percent downward adjustment to business rates paid on retail properties to address the “imbalance that sees the retail industry pay 7.4 percent of all business taxes”, representing a share 1.5 times greater than its share of the overall economy.

In a statement, Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: “Retail has been the golden goose, generating tax revenues far beyond the industry’s size, but the current situation is not sustainable.

“The government should act to rebalance the system and ensure all industries are paying their fair share. This in turn would drive increased retail investment in people, places and communities. The budget is the perfect opportunity to lay the groundwork for local investment that delivers for retail’s customers, delivers for its employees, and delivers for the economy.”