Trade bodies plea for ministers to act ahead of incoming Budgets
SHOP owners in Scotland could see a £22.5million hike in their business rates bills from April, the Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) is warning.
It made the calculation after September’s headline inflation rate rose to 3.5%. UK ministers use this figure to set business rates for the next financial year and Scottish ministers usually follow suit.
The SRC also said the retail sector rates relief in Scotland was less generous at every level than England’s scheme.
David Lonsdale, SRC director, said: “If government and politicians are serious about wanting to fix the cost of living then they need to focus on fixing the cost of doing business.
“They must help retailers who are striving to invest in their stores while keeping down prices for Scottish households.
“Piling yet more taxes onto retailers, on top of the swathe of tax and regulatory burdens the industry has been lumbered with of late, only serves to make it more difficult for retailers to invest in our high streets, create job opportunities, and keep down prices on shop shelves.
“In her upcoming Scottish Budget, Finance Secretary Jenny Gilruth should rule out any increase in the business rates paid by retailers and deliver a level playing field with England for all Scottish stores.”
Lonsdale has also urged Chancellor John Healey to avoid piling any further statutory costs on to retailers and called for a rise in the employers’ National Insurance (NI) threshold to make it less costly to hire people.
And, given that food retailing is power-intensive, he hopes Healey will use his UK Budget to cut energy levies.
The Scottish Grocers’ Federation wants to see ministers shift from assessing the cost of individual policies and introduce a cumulative economic impact test to understand the burden on convenience retailers.
It said this should consider the likes of the rises in the National Living Wage, NI, inflation, interest rates and energy costs.
Chief exec Pete Cheema added: “We also need stronger joint action between Westminster and Edinburgh to tackle the growing rate of illicit goods being brought into the country.
“We can’t expect store owners to invest in their communities while facing increasing costs and unfair competition from illegal operators.”
The Fed has also called for action over rogue trade, retail crime, the NI threshold, rates and energy bills.
President Hemanshu Patel said: “This remains a challenging time for our members and those across the independent convenience sector as they continue to face high taxation and high energy costs.
“Whilst the Fed acknowledges the fiscal challenges the government must deal with, we hope that the needs of small retail businesses – and the wider social and economic benefits they provide – are also factored into the decisions you will need to make in this Budget and beyond.”
