Responding to the government’s interim report on Business Rates, Jonny Haseldine, Head of Business Environment Policy, said:
“It’s encouraging that the government is willing to explore a slice system alongside a commitment to reducing cliff edges around Small Business Rate Relief.
“But the reality remains that these are tweaks around the edges of a Business Rates system that is still fundamentally flawed.
“It causes an unnecessarily large burden on businesses regardless of their ability to pay and does not make allowances for the significant structural changes that have taken place in the UK economy over the last decade.
“We need a permanently lower multiplier of 45p for all businesses by the end of this parliament, regardless of sector.
“Proposals for a higher multiplier for all properties with a Rateable Value over £500,000 also have the potential to introduce unintended consequences. It would impose significant added costs on a variety of larger hotels and hospitality firms, who wouldn’t then be eligible for the lower RHL multiplier.
“In the longer term, we need a system that encourages growth and investment. It must be more responsive to the local and wider economic cycles and allow greater investment back into the local areas where it is paid.”
More information on the government’s interim report can be found here.