Cut interest rates and "save our shops" (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Cut interest rates and "save our shops"

4:24pm Monday 6th July 2009 in

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BUSINESS rates could be slashed if a campaign to save small shops gets the green light.

Westmorland and Lonsdale Conservative parliamentary candidate, Gareth McKeever is fighting for a 75 per cent discount for independent retailers in their first year of business.

He believes the scheme would inject new life into town and village centres and is calling on South Lakeland District Council for support.

“SLDC has millions of pounds in reserves, set aside for the proverbial rainy day,” said Mr McKeever. “With so many empty shops in Kendal and the surrounding towns and villages now is the time to spend this money and the way to spend it is to inject new life onto our high streets.”

To give retailers a chance to establish themselves, Mr McKeever proposes a 50 per cent rate discount in the second year of business, followed by a 25 per cent in the third year.

The scheme would see businesses pay the full amount to SLDC, which would then pass on the money to central government and reimburse the business using money from its reserves.

The only conditions would be that the business is local and not in competition with existing local shops.

“In somewhere like Kendal there is enough footfall to support more than one of a particular kind of business,” said Mr McKeever. “But in small towns like Sedbergh, we would have to be strict.”

Lin Williams, manager of Martin’s Newsagents at Highgate, Kendal, said she would support the scheme, adding, “Empty shops just draw people away and if they can create something to encourage new shops to the town it has to be a good thing.”

She said many local shop owners, who buy their newspapers at Martins, had complained of the five per cent rise in business rates this year.

“It is just bad for business, especially in the current climate,” she added.

Commenting on Mr McKeever’s suggestions, Simon McVey, assistant director of customer focus at SLDC, said: “Non-Domestic Rates is a tax which local council's collect on behalf of the Government. This means there is very little scope for local discretion to make changes to what is a national scheme.”

Shelagh McGregor, assistant director resources, said SLDC has a statutory duty to safeguard public money, including the maintenance and review of levels of reserves.

“There are restrictions on what the Council is able to fund from the reserves it has set up, most of which are earmarked for specific purposes which tie in with the agreed priorities.”

Mr McKeever, however, is convinced the scheme could work.

“If there is a political will to do it from SLDC it could happen,” he said.

SLDC offer a number of help packages for businesses struggling during the recession and, at the end of the month, a new government scheme allowing businesses to defer payment of 60 per cent of the 2009/10 rates increase will also be introduced.

For more information visit www.southlakeland.gov.uk/business.