The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) has signed a letter alongside a group of business organisations calling for MPs sitting on the Treasury Select Committee to publish the final report of their business rates inquiry before the Autumn Budget.
The Treasury Select Committee launched its inquiry into business rates in February to scrutinise how government policy has affected business and the findings of the inquiry were due to be published next month.
The letter, signed by business organisations including the British Retail Consortium and UK Hospitality, raises concerns that the recent ministerial reshuffle has risked delaying urgent business rates reforms.
ACS chief executive James Lowman said: “The time for talk about fixing the business rates system has now passed, we need action and real change, and the Treasury Select Committee is ideally placed to propose and interrogate ideas for making the system fairer and more effective.”
ACS has called for the government to ensure that the business rates system incentivises investment rather than penalising those who choose to invest in their business.
Lowman added: “The most pressing need is for investment to be incentivised by the system, not penalised as it is now, and for crucial services like free-to-use cash machines and petrol forecourts to receive fairer treatment sand reduced rates bills.”
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