Co-op chief backs Lewis

THE Co- op has urged ministers to look carefully at Tesco boss Dave lewis’s plans to reform business rates.

Co-op supermarket chain chief executive Steve Murrells said the proposals, which include a 2pc tax on internet sales, could help level the playing field between High Street shops and online rivals.

lewis has suggested the money raised should be used to cut business rates.

Murrells said: ‘As a wholesaler to thousands of independent retailers, the Co-op knows that small shops are the lifeblood of British high streets – and healthy high streets play such an important role in bringing people together in their community to do much more than just shop.

‘So anything that helps these shops compete effectively has to be worth considering.’ Separately, robert Hayton, head of UK business rates at the property consultant Altus Group, said: ‘There is now an overriding consensus that the tax playing field must be levelled. The proposal ensures additional revenue is ring-fenced for the good of the entire sector.’

Business rates were devised before the internet age, and shops are taxed based on the estimated rental value of their property. They claim this puts traditional stores at a huge disadvantage compared to online players such as Amazon which have huge out-of-town bases where rates are lower.

lewis, who earned £ 4.6m last year, unveiled his plan in an article for the Mail this week, writing: ‘We face an active policy choice: act now... or do nothing and face the inevitable consequences.’