SNP told to ease rates ‘burden’ on retailers as vacancies increase

RETAILERS are urging SNP ministers to ease the ‘burden’ on their businesses as Scotland’s high streets continue to have a higher vacancy rate than those elsewhere in the UK.

Store bosses welcomed an increase in footfall last month but warned that Scots town centres are ‘still in a worse position than the UK average’ – the vacancy rate north of the Border was 10.8 per cent in July compared with 9.2 per cent in the rest of Britain.

Experts believe issues such as the shift to online shopping have created a ‘challenging environment’ for retailers, with owners urging the Scottish Government to offer more relief from business rates. The Scottish Daily Mail launched the Save Our High Streets campaign to force ministers to help ease the pressures on struggling firms.

Scottish Tory economy spokesman Dean Lockhart said the footfall increase was ‘welcomed’ but ‘isn’t cause for celebration’.

He added: ‘With such onerous business rates, the SNP has created a very tough environment for shops. This is harming the potential growth of the retail sector.’

The Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) Springboard footfall and vacancies monitor shows that footfall grew by 0.5 per cent last month, ending 14 months of decline.

The good weather is believed to have led to a surge in spending on summer items.

But SRC head of policy and external affairs Ewan MacDonald-Russell said: ‘Scottish town centres are in a worse position than the UK average.

‘The structural challenges facing the industry remain. [This] would be eased if government, at both Holyrood and Westminster, would look to reduce the burdens hampering the industry.’

Springboard’s Diane Wehrle said: ‘The fact the vacancy rate is noticeably higher indicates stores find it a challenging trading environment.’

Finance Secretary Derek Mackay has since resisted calls to overhaul the rates system after a revaluation last year led to rises of up to 400 per cent.

The Scottish Government said it provides ‘the most competitive rates relief in the UK, worth around £720million’.

A spokesman added that councils could help to support local businesses by ‘considering any request to create local business rates relief, or using additional income generated through the Business Rates Incentivisation Scheme’.