Businesses: Business Rates

Lord Borwick Excerpts

Monday 13th January 2014 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Borwick]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the impact on high street businesses and employment of measures relating to business rates announced in the Autumn Statement.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Communities and Local Government (Baroness Stowell of Beeston) (Con)]

My Lords, our £1 billion package will benefit all 1.7 million business rate payers. The measures announced in the Autumn Statement include the annual increase to be capped at 2%, around 360,000 businesses to receive 100% small business relief, and around 300,000 shops, pubs and restaurants to get a £1,000 discount. The package exceeds expectations and was welcomed by the CBI and the British Retail Consortium, and it will provide the support that high streets need to grow and provide employment.

[Lord Borwick (Con)]

I thank my noble friend for that Answer, but does she agree about the importance of the problem of empty shops on the high streets, made worse by empty rates introduced by Gordon Brown and the Labour Party some time ago? What action are the Government taking to address that matter?

[Baroness Stowell of Beeston]

My noble friend is right that this pressure on businesses was made worse by the tax hikes on empty premises introduced by Gordon Brown. To help to relieve that pressure, and as part of our £1 billion business rate package announced at the Autumn Statement, we also included a relief that provides a 50% discount for 18 months for new occupiers of retail premises that have been empty for a year or more. This is on top of exempting all empty new-build property from business rates for 18 months.