Reeves branded ‘face of doom’ as she’s urged to cut business rates

Rachel Reeves was branded ‘the face of doom’ as she was urged to cut business rates to save the High Street. In a meeting at Number 11 Downing Street yesterday, the bosses of around ten of Britain’s best-known store chains made clear to the Chancellor that her reforms to the property tax risk piling more pain on the industry.

The talks came as one retail executive described her as ‘the face of doom’ after hitting the sector with crippling tax hikes. Labour has proposed reforms theoretically designed to level the playing field between bricks-and-mortar shops and online rivals by increasing taxes for larger premises, with the intention of catching out warehouses used by online vendors.

But retailers argue the changes will also hit ‘anchor’ stores on high streets that draw in shoppers to other businesses. Businesses fear around 4,000 shops could be forced to pay higher rates.

Industry chiefs including John Lewis chairman Jason Tarry, B&Q chief executive Graham Bell and British Retail Consortium chief executive Helen Dickinson pressed the Chancellor yesterday. Dickinson said: ‘The industry was clear that its number one priority at the next Budget is the Government’s upcoming business rates reforms: ensuring that it delivers a meaningful reduction for retail, and that no shop pays more.

‘This will help to relieve the pressure on prices, support local employment and deliver the growth the Government seeks.’ A source added: ‘Business rates was the prominent issue and retailers got their point across. It is a long time until the Budget so we’ll have to wait and see, but there is a degree of cautious positivity.’

But there was also concern that the Budget will not take place until November 26 – later than expected. Retailers were last year hit when Reeves’ hiked employer National Insurance Contributions and wages.

And there are worries that the Budget’s timing will weigh on already dire consumer spending in the ‘golden quarter’ – the run-up to Christmas. ‘There will be a prolonged period of speculation which will only dampen consumer confidence and consumer spending – all this at the most critical trading period,’ said Andrew Goodacre, the British Independent Retailers Association chief executive.