Rates are 12 times higher than Amazon

THE high street giant shelled out £174million in business rates last year.

The figure is 12 times the amount paid by online giant Amazon on its warehouses across England and Wales.

John Lewis paid £10.4million on its flagship Oxford Street store alone last year – up £4million on the year before.

This is the third highest business rates bill paid by a retailer on a single property in the UK.

Industry experts said the huge sums underlined the need for reform of business rates which are crippling retailers.

The Mail has called for a reform of business rates as part of our Save Our High Streets campaign.

Robert Hayton, of Altus Group, a ratings agency, said Chancellor Philip Hammond should use the autumn Budget to freeze business rate rises.