Supporting Small Business

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 19th October 2021 Commons Chamber

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

It is an honour to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Ilford South (Sam Tarry), who raises so many valuable points about businesses up and down the country.

My hon. Friend the Member for Bradford West (Naz Shah) mentioned weddings. I come from a Nigerian background, in which weddings are such a joyous occasion for families and an opportunity for many people to travel to the UK. They come not just for the wedding but to support our local businesses. That is the time when many of those family members have their annual holiday, and they shop, supporting so many businesses, and stay in our hotels. It is not just the wedding industry that benefits; so many other people benefit from having that tourism and trade coming into the UK.

Over the past 19 months, businesses in Vauxhall have really suffered. They have seen footfall through their doors reduce. If we are honest, the measures introduced to tackle coronavirus have led to many businesses having to shut their doors. Others have had to adapt to new ways of commerce, and those that needed to stay open found themselves having to change, in some cases overnight, as the Government guidelines changed.

Many of the businesses in Vauxhall that I have spoken to operate on tight margins for both cost and revenue, and they face another double whammy in the coming months. Not only do they face having to repay large debts that they have stored up because of covid and the Government failure to support some key businesses, but many of the businesses in my constituency have a higher rateable value, so they did not qualify for the business rates relief. They are still struggling now. They have lost a large chunk of the tourists who come through, and they are having to rely on local people to help support them. The Government may have lifted restrictions in the UK, but our high infection rates mean that many countries continue to place restrictions on travel from this country. I chair the South Bank Partnership Forum, which brings together many businesses in and around the south bank. The forum’s figures estimated that 100 million people passed through Waterloo station each year alone. We have not seen those figures come back, and they will probably not come back for a very long time.

We cannot pretend that the impact of this pandemic is over for businesses. The Government need to take real measures to support businesses not just in Vauxhall but right across the country. Saving our high streets is a vital part of that. It makes economic sense, because as many hon. Members have said, high streets provide an economic boost to so many of our communities. I started my working life on our high street in Clapham in Sainsbury’s, in that bright orange uniform many hon. Members may remember, but so many of our high streets and their shops are closing. Yesterday, I met members of Lambeth Pensioners Action Group. They highlighted issues around returning to the high street and getting to the high street.

I hope the Government will listen to all the issues Labour Members have raised and support the motion. We cannot just keep talking about reforming business rates; it is time for us to act and reform them once and for all.