But where’s Sajid?
The minister in charge has done ANOTHER vanishing act
SAJID Javid – the minister in charge of business rates – came under fire last night for staying on holiday amid uproar over the planned rises.
Government insiders said the Communities Secretary is abroad despite the continued furore over the levy.
It comes a year after he was forced to fly back from a trip to Australia while the future of the Port Talbot steelworks hung in the balance.
Last night there was anger in Whitehall that the ‘Where’s Wally’ search for Mr Javid was happening again. (In the popular cartoon books, children have to find the stripey-jumpered figure of Wally among a crowd of similarly dressed characters.)
Colleagues are said to be furious that he has not cut short his break to explain the reasons why 500,000 firms are facing extortionate increases.
One Government insider said: ‘It’s frustrating that the Secretary of State is not around to explain his policy. This is not the time to be away.’
Pressure has been mounting on No 10 and the Treasury to use next month’s Budget to reverse the changes or implement a freeze in business rates. But the policy is actually the responsibility of the Department for Communities and Local Government, which is headed by Mr Javid. A source close to Mr Javid said that it was the Commons recess and he was ‘still working’. Yesterday he put out a statement defending aspects of the business tax rise.
he said thousands of businesses in the North and the Midlands would benefit from falls in their business rates, adding that this would give regional economies ‘the edge’ to drive growth for the country as a whole. Nearly threequarters of businesses would see a fall or no change in their rate, he said.
The then-business secretary was away on a trade trip to Australia when the board of Indian firm Tata, which owns the Port Talbot steelworks, took the decision to withdraw from Britain, with the loss of hundreds of jobs.
After it later emerged that Mr Javid planned to stay on in Australia for a holiday with his teenage daughter, he was forced to fly back.
Last night Tim Farron, the Liberal Democrat leader, said: ‘Sajid is on holiday while businesses suffer. This is a total disgrace. Our small businesses deserve better than seeing tax cuts for Amazon while their overheads go through the roof.’
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