£200M TAX BLOW TO HIGH STREETS

Appeal to Hammond for rates freeze

CHANCELLOR Philip Hammond faces fresh calls to freeze business rates as it emerged already hammered high streets face a tax hike of around £200million next year.

More than 1.2 million businesses will be hit with a rates rise again in April, and the scale of the increase depends on what inflation stands at next month.

The Consumer Prices Index measure of inflation rose to 2.5% last month. If it stays at that, businesses in England would see a £758million surge in their rates bills next year, according to analysis by industry experts Altus Group.

Of that, £194million would fall on firms in the retail sector.

Robert Hayton, head of UK Business Rates at Altus Group, called on the Chancellor to take action.

He said: “With our high streets engulfed in crisis, and Brexit uncertainty hurting manufacturers and the services industries, the Chancellor should be bold in his autumn Budget later in the year through an unprecedented stimulus by freezing rate rises.”

Soaring business rates have battered high street stores already struggling to compete with online giants.

In a victory for our High Street Fightback campaign, the Chancellor last week said he was considering an “Amazon tax” on online sales to help level the playing field. Mr Hammond also brought forward a switch from the Retail Prices Index to the lower CPI to calculate rates increases to April this year, saving firms £2.3billion over five years. The amount raked in from business rates has surged by £6billion in the last 10 years.