18 September 2020
Bira has welcomed the London Mayor's support for an extension to the business rates holiday.
Bira has been campaigning for the Government to extend its business rates holiday past April 2021, as retailers continue to recover from the impact of Covid-19.
Now, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has spoken in favour of the move, calling on the Government to extend the rates holiday into the 2021/22 financial year.
In a joint submission to the Government’s business rates review, Mr Khan has teamed up with local councils in the Capital to call for the extension.
Mr Khan said: "Businesses across London continue to struggle from the impact of Covid-19. If the business rates holiday comes to an end I worry many employers will have no choice but to make more people unemployed."
Andrew Goodacre, Bira's CEO, said: "We are pleased the London Mayor has added his support for a further business rates holiday. It is something we have been campaigning for since the start of the pandemic.
"Now, more than ever independent retailers need government support. We'd also like them to consider a voucher scheme, similar to the Eat Out to Help Out initiative, particularly in the run up to Christmas."
Additional Guidance and Resources