Sainsbury’s and M&S are among the major retailers urging Chancellor Jeremy Hunt to take action ahead of the planned increase in business rates.
Business rates are set to rise by 6.7% next year – a £470m jump for British retailers, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC).
The supermarket bosses are among a group of leading retailers that have called on Hunt to cut or freeze the business rates ‘multiplier’ used to determine commercial property tax prior to the Autumn Statement on 22 November, This is Money reported.
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Sainsbury’s chief executive Simon Roberts told The Mail: “If there’s one issue I am concerned about that could interrupt food inflation coming down, it is choices made in the Budget on business rates.
“There is clearly a risk that any increase will bring further pressure on food prices.'”
The supermarket giant said it currently spends almost £500m on business rates a year.
M&S CEO Stuart Machin also said that increases to business rates could “threaten to divert millions of pounds away from ongoing investment in keeping prices down and creating jobs across the country”.
“The retail sector is disproportionately impacted by business rates at a time when the Government is looking to tackle inflation and consumers are still struggling with the cost of living.”
In September, bosses from 44 of the UK’s biggest retailers including Tesco, Sainsbury’s Asda, Aldi, Lidl and M&S wrote to Hunt calling for a freeze in business rates.
This came as the BRC found that seven in ten of its members were “very concerned” at the prospect of a rise.
