CASE STUDY
AWARD-WINNING restaurateur Michael Smith has seen his business rates treble.
The 65-year-old former lecturer said he and his neighbours were left livid by the revaluation this year that meant huge increases for companies across the country.
Yesterday, he felt the Scottish Government did not do enough to relieve the pressure on family-run firms such as his.
Mr Smith, who left his job at Motherwell College in 1999 to open Smith’s in Uddingston, Lanarkshire – which was Scottish Restaurant of the Year in 2011 – said: ‘I would like to have heard more in the Budget about how the Government are going to help small businesses who have been hit by massive rates rises.
‘Our business rates went up from £11,000 to £33,000 and I can’t pass that on to customers by tripling the price of meals.
‘I applied for the Small Business Bonus Scheme but I don’t know if we will get a discount. That just seems like a sticking plaster to me, more needs to be done to help small businesses.
‘Larger companies have seen their rates go down but it’s the smaller guys on the high street who are being hit in the pocket.’
He added: ‘I don’t mind paying a bit more but three times what we were paying before seems too much.
‘All the small businesses on our street are up in arms about it.
‘I don’t think the income tax changes will affect us too much but it’s the business rates that I think should be looked at again.’
Last month, it emerged that one in three Scottish firms had lodged appeals against business rate bills totalling more than £5billion.
More than 6 ,000 companies challenged their non-domestic rates following the first revaluation since 2010.
It saw businesses face rises of up to 400 per cent – with fears they would be forced to cut back on spending, lay off staff or even close.
Despite a one-year rates cap for some companies – including bars, hotels, restaurants and cafes – many have appealed amid growing concerns that they could face soaring bills next year.
At around the same time, four leading business groups called on Mr Mackay to revamp business rates or risk leaving Scottish firms at a multi-million-pound competitive disadvantage.
Scottish Engineering, the Scottish Property Federation, the Scottish Retail Consortium and the Scottish Tourism Alliance all signed the appeal to the Finance Secretary.