CUMBRIA Chamber of Commerce believes that Chancellor Philip Hammond should use next week's Budget next week to ease the burden of business rates and announce investment in Cumbria’s roads and railways.

Chief executive Rob Johnston said: “We’re worried, and this is no exaggeration, that some businesses will be forced to shut as a direct result of the increase in business rates.

“We’ve heard of increases of up to 300 per cent for livestock auction marts, and of one licensed premises in Carlisle where the rateable value has gone from £20,000 to £120,000.

“The Government says the revaluation is ‘fiscally neutral’, which in plain English means that for every business that is worse off, another one somewhere will be better off.

“That’s scant consolation if you’re one of the losers.”

The Chamber is calling on Mr Hammond to:

  • Abandon the ‘fiscal neutrality’ principle and provide more help for those paying more on top of the transitional reliefs already announced;
  • Link annual increases in business rates to the Consumer Price Index, rather than the Retail Price Index, which would mean bills rise more slowly;
  • Ignore plant and machinery in rates revaluations. At the moment, businesses that invest are penalised by a hike in business rates.

It also wants changes to the appeals process, which can drag on for years. There are still almost 300,000 outstanding appeals from the last revaluation in 2010.

Mr Johnston hopes that the Chancellor will honour a pledge made by Transport Secretary Chris Grayling, during the Copeland by-election campaign, to upgrade the A595.

He argues that improving the road and rail links between Carlisle and west Cumbria would create a single travel-to-work and travel-to-learn area. At present, long journey times act as a deterrent to commuters.

Mr Johnston said: “Better links would allow people in west Cumbria to take up opportunities in Carlisle, and vice versa.”

He believes similar benefits could come from improving the A590 from Barrow to Kendal.