Business Rates
This coverage examines business rates policy and its implications for the UK retail sector. Reporting focuses on government decisions, reforms, rate relief measures, and their impact on store operations, profitability, and investment decisions. Tailored for retail executives and managers, it provides analysis to help navigate costs, advocate for change, and plan effectively in response to fiscal pressures.
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Sep- 2022 -1 SeptemberGovernment
Truss in talks to further cut business rates amid rising costs
Liz Truss has reportedly entered discussions with industry lobbyists over plans to further cut business rates. According to The Telegraph, the frontrunner in the Tory leadership campaign could extend business rates relief to more premises in order to protect them from the rising energy costs they face. Reports said the…
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Aug- 2022 -31 AugustEconomy
Food prices rise at fastest rate since 2008, BRC finds
New data from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and NielsenIQ index has shown that food prices have risen at their fastest rate since 2008 in August, with an increase of 9.3% after an initial 7% increase last month. The BRC reported that fresh food was more than 10% more expensive…
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17 AugustFeatures
The business pledges of the Conservative leadership finalists
Business Rates On 9 August, the Retail Jobs Alliance, a coalition of retailers including Morrisons, Greggs and Tesco, called on both Sunak and Truss to pledge to cut business rates which are charged on most non-domestic properties, such as shops, offices, pubs, warehouses, factories, and holiday rental homes or guest…
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17 AugustEconomy
Inflation hits new 40-year high at 10.1%
Inflation has once again broken records with a new 40-year high recorded last month, as the Consumer Price Index (CPI) hit 10.1% in the 12 months to July 2022, up from 9.4% in June. According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the biggest contribution to this figure was rising…
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11 AugustGovernment
Rishi Sunak commits to reducing business rates if elected PM
Rishi Sunak has vowed to slash business rates this autumn during the Conservative leadership debate at the Darlington Hippodrome theatre. The former chancellor committed to extending the current 50% reduction in his first budget as prime minister, saying that small retailers are the “beating hearts of all our communities”. Sunak…
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9 AugustGovernment
Retail Jobs Alliance calls on next PM to reduce business rates
The Retail Jobs Alliance, a coalition of retailers including Morrisons, Greggs and Tesco, has called on both Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss to pledge to cut business rates, which it said were “killing our high streets”. The group, also consisting of Co-op, Kingfisher,, RivingtonHark, Sainsbury’s, and Waterstones, said it feared…
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1 AugustHigh Street
Shop vacancies fall for third quarter in a row
In the second quarter of 2022, the overall GB vacancy rate decreased to 14.0%, which was 0.1 percentage points better than Q1 and 0.5 percentage points better than the same period last year, according to the BRC. This was the third consecutive quarter of falling vacancy rates. All locations saw…
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1 AugustSupermarkets
Iceland boss calls for next PM to rethink business rates
Iceland has joined in the call for Tory leadership candidates to rethink “outdated” business rates as the company’s managing director, Richard Walker, reportedly urged the prime minister to promise a “root and branch” reform of the tax. His intervention, according to This is Money, follows similar calls from other UK…
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Jul- 2022 -22 JulyEconomy
Transitional relief could cost retailers over £1bn, BRC warns
Retailers have warned that the failure to fix the “flawed” Transitional Relief system could cost the industry over £1bn between 2023-2026, and it will reportedly force shops which are most impacted by artificially inflated rates bills to close, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The BRC is calling for…
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7 JulyElectrical
Currys warns of ‘uncertain’ outlook despite profit rise
Currys has warned that its outlook for consumer spending is “uncertain”, despite reporting that pre-tax profits jumped 19% year-on-year from £156m to £186m for the year ended 30 April 2022. The financial year saw group store sales increase 24%, with 61% growth in the UK and Ireland, which is “higher…
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