Bodies welcome business rate support, demand more help with energy bills

Local shops have welcomed a significant business rates support package announced today (17) in the 2022 Autumn Statement.

In the Autumn Statement, the government has announced that from April 2023, it will provide business rates support in the following headline areas:

• The business rates multiplier will be frozen at its current level in 2023-24
• Business rates relief for eligible retail and hospitality businesses will increase from 50 per cent currently to 75 per cent in April 2023, up to a maximum of £110,000 of relief per business
• A new Supporting Small Businesses Scheme (SSBS) will cap the bill increases for those losing their eligibility for Small Business Rate Relief or Rural Rate Relief to a maximum of £50 extra a month in 2023-24

ACS chief executive James Lowman said, “We welcome the freeze of the business rates multiplier for another year. The extension and increase in the retail, hospitality and leisure relief scheme will be warmly welcomed by small business in particular. Scrapping downward transition will help the businesses most adversely impacted by the pandemic and other market factors, and the Supporting Small Business Scheme will help those who have grown their business to the point where they lose some business rates relief they previously claimed.

“This package of business rates measures meets our asks to the Chancellor and we are delighted that he has listened. We will continue to work with the Treasury and other departments on modernising the whole business rates system.”

During the Statement, the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced that the Government would accept the recommendations of the Low Pay Commission, keeping the National Living Wage on target to reach two-thirds of median earnings by 2024.

On wage rates, Lowman said: “The increase in the National Living Wage to 10.42 is in line with established government policy to reach two-thirds of median earnings by 2024. This will mean tough decisions for businesses like convenience stores for whom their wage bill is their biggest cost area, and this increase of over 9 per cent will be challenging to bear.”

The Autumn Statement has also confirmed that the second round of the Levelling Up Fund will allocate at least £1.7bn to priority local infrastructure projects.

On levelling up, Lowman said: “The continuation of levelling up funding is good news, but this needs to be focused on neighbourhoods and communities close to where people live, which are often the places where convenience stores trade. Two-thirds of people would rather money was invested in creating safe local neighbourhoods and supporting the businesses operating there, rather than on major city and town centres.”

While domestic support on energy costs beyond April 2023 was set out in the Autumn Statement, there was no announcement about the level of support being provided to businesses in the Spring. ACS has previously called on the Government to ensure that convenience stores are included in the list of essential vulnerable businesses that will receive additional help with their energy bills in 2023.

On energy costs, Lowman said: “Increases in energy bills are the single biggest concern facing retailers at the moment. We need clarity as soon as possible on what the Government intends to do to ensure that convenience stores can keep serving their communities in the new year. Without support on this crucial issue, stores will be facing extremely difficult decisions in the new year.”

Responding to today’s autumn statement, which announced spending cuts and tax increases amounting to £55 billion, the Fed’s National President Jason Birks said that more independent retailers could be forced out of business as a result.

“As a government that has stood as the party for businesses, this statement does not benefit independent retailers,” he said.

“Independent retailers are the heart of many communities and the decision made by the government to raise the energy cap to £3,000 may result in the closures of small, independent stores across the country. For many rural areas, these stores are the only access many residents have to a shop without needing to travel.

“For many, visiting a store is the only time they see someone during the day. This in-person contact is essential for the well-being of community members. Loss of these because of the strain that will be placed on businesses is going to have profound impacts on many communities.”

“It is essential that small business is supported and helped through this time of crisis. Lack of support is unthinkable and the added expense to an already squeezed budget could just mean the end for many businesses. This is unimaginable and the government must act now to ensure that this doesn’t happen,” he continued.

The government’s decision to raise the energy cap to £3000 without guaranteed support past April is a terrifying prospect, Birks added. Small businesses are already struggling to survive the pressure that is the cost-of-living crisis – the decision to further strain businesses will be crippling. The Fed hopes that the Chancellor’s pledge to target relief at businesses will prioritise struggling small businesses to help them survive during this time of crisis.

The Fed calls for the government to consider the impact that these measures will have on independent retailers and hopes to work with ministers to find support for those, who throughout the pandemic, were a lifeline for this country.