ACS government relations director Edward Woodall has urged that the Non-Domestic Rating Bill should slash the business rates multiplier by 20p, in order to save smaller shops thousands of pounds per year.

Currently, the small business multiplier is set at 49.9p, while the standard non-domestic rating multiplier is set is 54.6p. 

Woodall told the Bill Committee that to make a tangible difference to local shops, there needs to be a reduction in the rating multiplier.

Following the Budget, the business rates discount for retail and hospitality businesses is reducing from 75% to 40% in April. 

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“For a retailer that sits just outside the threshold of small business rate relief at £15-16k rateable value, a 5p reduction in the multiplier would save them around £1,000 per year while a 20p reduction would save over £3,000 a year,” he explained.

“This is a significant sum to help retailers invest in their business, either defensively on crime prevention and detection, or positively in their community. There are however thousands of stores that are dealing with increased costs in other areas of their business, particularly on employment, so for those businesses it is likely that the money saved on rates will go straight into keeping that store trading.”

Rates relief is especially important for rural and village stores

Woodall also highlighted the importance of discretionary rate relief for rural businesses, particularly those that are operating as the last local shop in that village or rural area. 

“Reliefs for businesses that are trading in rural areas with communities that rely solely on them are extremely important, but it is challenging for the Bill to be able to address this effectively as there are often more differences within a region than there are between regions,” he continued.  

“We believe that the most effective relief for these businesses is distributed by local authorities, but we know that their budgets are extremely stretched, so it’s important that the government looks at putting additional resources and trust in local authorities to deliver discretionary reliefs that support the last shop trading in rural areas.”

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