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Petition launched as Wales says no to bombsite Britain tax

Following a host of high profile campaigning by the British Property Federation, a Kent Conservative candidate has launched a No 10 petition calling for the scrapping of empty property rates as the Welsh Assembly says no to the tax.

Laura Sandys, the Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for South Thanet has placed the petition at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/emptythreat/

Kent has been badly hit by the downturn and many firms are facing further problems with having to pay rates on premises they cannot use.

Meanwhile in Wales, ministers have realised that the additional tax revenue in Wales predicted to be between £30-50 million a year is far outweighed by the damaging long term effects on jobs and regeneration.

Deputy first minister, Ieuan Wyn Jones, said: ‘’We will be pressing the UK government to exempt employment premises from empty property rates. It is important to stress that it would be difficult for the Assembly Government to do that on its own; a UK-wide approach would be needed for that to be financially possible for us.’’

The move comes as support for Commons motions has more than doubled in recent weeks. Over 120 MPs have signed Commons motions calling for the controversial tax to be axed and now politicians and businesses want the public to show its support. They include front bench Tories such as business spokesman Alan Duncan and shadow communities minister Eric Pickles.

Before April, firms received business rate relief at 50% for empty offices and shops and 100% for warehouses and factories. This was cut in a bid to raise around £1bn, but pressure has continued

Laura Sandys, the Conservative parliamentary candidate for South Thanet who has launched the petition, said:

“I have seen the devastating effects of empty rates first hand in Thanet, where local businesses are being penalised for being loyal, local citizens and staying true to their roots. They have continued to keep their businesses in Kent, pouring their money and efforts into keeping the area vibrant, and are now being stung for a tax on properties they simply cannot use just as recession begins to bite. It’s vital that people all over the country sign this petition.”

Peter Cosmetatos, the BPF’s director for finance and investment, said:

“We welcome signs that government is finally beginning to recognise just how damaging some of the unintended consequences of empty rates are proving, particularly in the current economic climate. We would caution against a piecemeal approach to repairing that damage, however. This poorly conceived measure is having a disastrous impact on regeneration and other speculative development projects, on the availability of lower cost, older premises on which SMEs particularly rely, on industrial property, for which the economic impact of the change has been most dramatic, and on occupier businesses which can no longer effectively cut their overheads by vacating surplus space and may be forced to make redundancies or become insolvent.

“The only real solution is a complete restoration of relief to the position before April 2008. If the government wants to tackle persistent high vacancy rates even where there is high demand, as Barker and Lyons recommended, it should do so only on the basis of proper consultation and only when demand begins to recover after the current recession.“

http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/emptythreat/

Anyone affected is being advised to write to their local MP and email info@emptyrates.com with information about their plight.

For more information please conatct:

Maddie Williams, 020 7802 0364, mwilliams@bpf.org.uk
Andrew Teacher, 07968 12 45 45, ateacher@bpf.org.uk