bssa blasts lack of Government consultation for Small Business Rate Bill

Under the Bill, all businesses with a rateable value of over £50,000, will be eligible for the addition tax. As this is a sum which encapsulates many independent retailers operating on the high street it could have huge implications for them.

John Dean, bssa Chief Executive said: “This lack of consultation shows that the Government simply doesn't understand or care about the pressures on smaller, independent retailers. A small business rate will add uncertainty, unpredictability and additional overhead to an independent sector that is already struggling to hold its own on the high street. If we are to have a vibrant, varied retail sector it needs to be nurtured not ignored.”

bssa, which represents in excess of 4,000 members who have a combined annual turnover exceeding £3 billion, trading out of 6,200 outlets and employing over 45,000 staff, is lobbying hard for the level of Small Business Rate Relief (SBRR) to be raised from its current threshold of £15,000 outside London, to a more realistic figure that reflects the cost of occupancy on the high street in the UK today. It argues that this is vitally important if we are to encourage the start up of small independent businesses and to arrest and reverse the decline of the high street.

bssa is not reassured by the proposed safeguards mentioned by the Government, as

John Dean explains: “ Whilst the government talks about safeguards, there appears to be considerable latitude in the process of consultation that local authorities will have to conduct with businesses. There's real danger that local authorities might abuse this system.”