Kate Nicholls, the CEO of UKHospitality, has this morning welcomed calls by an influential group of MPs, for a review of the business rates system – a regressive tax that penalises pubs and other hospitality businesses (see full release below), threatening communities and jobs.
Nicholls (pictured) commented, “Business rates in its current form is a fundamentally unfair tax for pubs and the wider hospitality sector. It actively works against Government’s levelling up agenda by suppressing and deterring investment in skills and local communities.
“In order to safeguard jobs and businesses, and to support a fully recovered and thriving hospitality sector, business rates must be reformed, with a fairer system that does not disproportionately penalise businesses that bring people together and create jobs.'
Nicholls went on, 'There must also be a fully functioning infrastructure to ensure that valuations are accurate and that appeals are accessible.
“More widely, the pubs and hospitality sector needs a fairer tax system. These businesses, when compared to other sectors, are significantly overtaxed, which stifles investment, growth and jobs creation.”