BRC battles business rates after ‘worst year ever’
Website Editor • January 21, 2020
2019 was UK retail’s worst year ever for retail sales according to the British Retail Consortium who are demanding urgent action from the new government in their March budget to help the High Street.
Total retail sales for 2019 decreased by 0.1%, compared with 1.2% growth in 2018, making it the worst year on record. Non-food sales saw a decline of 1.3 per cent in 2019 according to BRC/KPMG data.
The pre-Christmas trading period failed to stop the decline as November and December taken together showed a total sales declined 0.9% compared with the same period in 2018.
Looking ahead, Helen Dickenson, BRC chief executive, said: “The public’s confidence in Britain’s trade negotiations will have a big impact on spending over the coming year. “There are many ongoing challenges for retailers: to drive up productivity, continue to raise wages, improve recyclability of products and cut waste. It is essential the new government makes good on its promise to review, and then reform the broken business rates system which sees retail pay 25 per cent of all business rates, while accounting for five per cent of the economy.”
Ms Dickenson said the scrapping of transitional relief was of paramount importance as it was “stopping people paying reduced business rates”.
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