Business Rates

We have heard much about the challenges that many of us have seen in our surgeries when representatives of small business have chatted to us. I had a meeting with people from the Essex branch of the Federation of Small Businesses who told me about the challenges that their members face, with margins being squeezed, banks not supporting them and so on. They raised the issue of rates: rates seem to be rising above inflation, which brings challenges, and the organisation has expectations of how local councils can help its members. There are three issues to do with local business rates. One that has been highlighted for me was the difficulty that small businesses have in paying them. The Local Government Association has warned that, as it is,""More than half of all councils (56 per cent.) are reporting that firms in their areas are having difficulty paying business rates to local authorities"." It has also warned:""Eight out of ten councils are reporting an increase, or anticipated increase, in businesses requiring support."" Businesses are being driven away. A business in Witham in my constituency is being charged £200,000. It can move its whole operation to China, and is doing so—with the loss of 100 jobs. With that £200,000, it can have the whole businesses run elsewhere. That is a great shame; our towns are being gutted and businesses are being driven to close down. Councillor Margaret Eaton, the chair of the Local Government Association, said:""The recession is claiming around 85 small businesses every day and many need every single last bit of help and support to get through tough times. There are examples where businesses are going to see their rates bills double or even triple—this just isn't acceptable."" I totally agree. What are the solutions? We heard one today from my hon. Friend the Member for Mid-Worcestershire (Peter Luff), who proposed his own private Member's Bill, the Small Business Rate Relief (Automatic Payment) Bill, which would have rendered the relief automatically payable to eligible businesses, as it is in Wales. In another example, Braintree district council has proposed spreading rate payments over 10 points in a 12-month period, and breaking it up into 10 per cent. pieces over 12 months is a good solution. There is also the flexible rates solution, whereby local councils have discretionary powers. That idea does not mean that they have to make up the money from elsewhere, and allowing for some flexibility on rates will help draw in new businesses. As the hon. Members for Sheffield, Attercliffe (Mr. Betts) and for Falmouth and Camborne (Julia Goldsworthy) said, we want local businesses to have a say. I chaired a meeting in Braintree to make sure that local businesses there had a say; local business people met local council representatives to say what they wanted to be done, and that was important. I also want to mention the Essex bank, which will support local businesses. It is a creative solution from Essex county council, whose work I applaud. In the last 10 seconds, I should like to make one final plea, which echoes the words of my hon. Friend the Member for Hemel Hempstead (Mike Penning) and the hon. Member for Sunderland, South (Mr. Mullin). I ask the Government to review the pernicious charging of rates on empty properties; that has led to properties being destroyed up and down the country.