Question to the Department for Business and Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps his Department is taking to help high street retailers compete with online businesses.

We intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including those on the high street, from 2026-27.

The Plan for Small Businesses sets out how government will work across departments to tackle high street decline, address retail crime and anti-social behaviour, provide targeted funding to places, update our licensing regime and promote greater partnership working on the high street. SMEs on the high street will also benefit from the new tools to unlock access to finance, action to address late payments and regulatory costs, improve digital adoption and create easier pathways to business support through the Business Growth Service.