My Lords, I shall speak to Amendment 504GG in my name, and note that I am co-chair of the Midlands Engine All-Party Parliamentary Group. I thank my supporters, particularly the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, for her help in refining and improving the amendment, and the noble Lord, Lord Mawson, and the noble Baroness, Lady Verma, for their support.
I have spoken before in Committee about high streets, and will try not to repeat much of what I have previously said. I do not need to speak about the importance of regenerating high streets in the regions—I know that the Government get its vital importance for levelling up. Their plans for enhanced compulsory purchase powers and high street rental auctions could form part of the solution here.
However, I have spoken to many local stakeholders about these new powers, and the consensus is that they will not do much to move the dial. They are not
commensurate with the scale of the change that needs to happen if we are to look toward a future where high streets in our regional cities are bustling with activity, are pleasant environments where people want to come and spend time, and are integrated with transport systems to allow easy transit for people to spend time there.
It has been estimated that the cost of each high street rental auction could be at least £6,000. In a time of strain on local authorities’ finances, they are unlikely to be used. In any case, high street rental auctions and compulsory purchase powers have been set up to address the supply of high street units, but supply is not the issue here. Anyone looking to set up on high streets in my home city of Derby is spoilt for choice. Most landlords would not choose to have an empty property. The issue here is demand, not supply. The Government really need to look much more closely at how they can incentivise businesses to set up on high streets. This critical point should be addressed in the Bill and will move the dial.
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The Government need to look at the carrot as well as the stick. Amendment 504GG contains a proposal to do exactly that. Town centre investment zones are based on a proposal from the British Property Federation to utilise the tried and tested partnership model that has worked so well in the past. They bring together key stakeholders, including local councils, businesses, landlords and local people, to create a long-term vision and strategy for the zones and create an environment that really revives an area through a zone on a high street.
Importantly, this is coupled with incentives. You create the plan, designate a town centre investment zone and get some serious incentive for businesses in return. This amendment would give local authorities the power to apply a business-rate discount for businesses operating within such a zone. As we have heard many times in Committee, including in our debates earlier today, business rates are the key problem in terms of having incentives for businesses to set up in town centres at present. This amendment would provide a way through that for town centre investment zones in the absence of longer-term reform.
Related to that, there are several other important features of the amendment that I would highlight. First, the Bill sensibly includes the need for a consultation to drill down into the detail on how this policy will work in the long term. It also includes a mechanism to ensure, critically, that local authorities do not suffer any financial loss as a result of these regulations. The Government have made progress in this area recently. I noted with interest the announcement of high street accelerators in the recent anti-social behaviour action plan; I believe that around £2.5 million of funding has been announced in 10 key areas.
This is encouraging progress but I encourage the Government to look at this issue carefully and go much further. If we are really going to put an end to years of decline on the high street, a more permanent, long-term solution is needed. Policy announcements such as high street accelerators are welcome but, by not having any basis in statute, they are always vulnerable to changing priorities. Without powers to reduce business rates, the incentives on offer may not be sufficient really
to change things. Having a clear vision laid down in statute would give investors and other stakeholders the long-term certainty needed to transform the regeneration of town centres and make them the busy centres of retail activity that we all agree they should be.
The benefits to the Government doing this are clear: if the Minister accepts my amendment, the Government will have in the Bill a mechanism that will both begin to drive real change on high streets in the near term, and make the levelling-up agenda real on our high streets for all those who use them and the many more who will do so in future if we can make progress on this issue.