Key Points:
- WRC welcomes Welsh government plans for permanent business rates cuts for small shops but calls for relief to be extended to all retailers.
- Warns against proposed surtax on medium and large stores, arguing it would shift costs rather than reform Wales’ highest-in-GB rates system.
- Highlights financial strain on retailers, with £115m in extra costs hitting Welsh businesses from April’s UK Budget amid weak footfall and sales.
The Welsh Retail Consortium (WRC) has welcomed elements of the Welsh government’s proposals to overhaul business rates but warned that planned reforms risk penalising larger stores and failing to deliver genuine relief for the sector.
In its response to the consultation on “Proposals for non-domestic rates differential multipliers,” which closed on Tuesday (12 August), the WRC praised the government for recognising the disproportionate burden business rates place on retailers, who contribute more than a fifth of Wales’ total rates bill.
It backed the proposed permanent reduction in rates for smaller shops, but argued the cut should be extended to all retailers rather than offset by a new surtax on medium and larger stores.
Sara Jones, head of the WRC, said shifting costs from one group of shops to another “isn’t reform - it’s a reshuffle” and warned that Wales already has the highest business rate in Britain.
“Retailers have long borne the brunt of Wales’ outdated business rates system… Business rates in Wales are already at a 26-year high,” Jones said. “A permanent cut for the smallest shops is a step in the right direction, but real change means not leaving medium and larger retailers behind. Penalising them with a surtax would be a serious misstep.”
The warning comes amid what the WRC described as weak shopper footfall, sluggish sales and spiralling statutory costs. The group highlighted that UK retailers faced £2.3bn in additional costs from April’s UK Budget - £115m of which fell on Welsh businesses.
The WRC is calling for a “fairer, smarter approach” that encourages investment and supports the full retail ecosystem, rather than prompting businesses to invest outside Wales.