In an open letter sent ahead of the general election, the bodies urged parliamentary candidates to tackle this issue, saying: “The burden of property taxation is too high and is at a tipping point.” It went on to say that the future of the business rates system “will shape investment and growth in the UK economy for decades to come”.
Signatories including the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) and the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) said the current system was unfair and “not financially sustainable”. The letter said the UK has the highest rates in the G7, claiming they have increased from a third of rateable value in 1990 to half today.
“Business rates will not cease to be an issue for businesses until we have a fair system of business taxation, which is internationally competitive and encourages investment,” the letter said.
To address the situation, the letter calls on politicians hoping to make up the next Government to commit to a review across all business taxation, including increasing the frequency of revaluations beginning in 2020 together with a straightforward valuation process. It recommends using the consumer price index to inform rates from April 2018 rather than the retail price index that is used now, which it said was “unfair and not reflective of economic conditions”.
And it said the reformed rates system should “incentivise businesses that invest in and improve properties”.
“How the future government structures the business rates system and how we can best support it are key priorities for our organisations and its members. From our perspective there is broad agreement across the business community on what aspects of business rates are most in need of change, and we all strongly agree the burden is too high and unsustainable, making fundamental reform necessary,” the letter said.
In addition to BBPA and ALMR the other letter signatories are the British Retail Consortium, the British Chambers of Commerce, the Federation of Small Businesses, the British Property Federation, Association of Convenience Stores and Revo.