With the imminent appointment of Andy Burnham as the UK's new PM, Chris Brook-Carter, chief executive of the retail industry charity Retail Trust, is calling for greater support for the retail sector.
“Andy Burnham has said he wants to make UK high streets ‘a symbol of Britain’s renaissance’ and provide greater support for the businesses that bring social value to their local communities," he says.
“We fully support his ambitions but any plan to reinvigorate Britain’s high streets must place the nearly three million people who work in retail at its heart, as their collective wellbeing is fundamental to the energy, identity and economic prosperity of our towns and cities.
“There is a plan for the buildings. There needs to be a plan for the people in them. Retail sites and high streets cannot thrive unless the people in them do.
"Rising costs and unacceptable levels of crime and abuse are currently creating uncertainty and unhappiness across the workforce and this is limiting retailers’ ability to fully invest in the health and wellbeing of their people.
"The retail industry needs decisive leadership and we hope our new prime minister listens carefully to concerns around the burden of business rates and employment costs and also builds on the milestone Crime and Policing Act and the protections this should provide staff. Any new retail crime laws must be also accompanied by consistent enforcement and a clear public message that hostility, intimidation and abuse towards shop staff will not be tolerated, such as the Retail Trust’s Let’s Respect Retail campaign.
“The wellbeing of the entire UK workforce is critical to its economic resilience and productivity, and our charity is ready to work with Andy Burnham, his Government and retail employers to ensure his ambitions for the country and its high streets become a reality.”
The incoming PM has already signalled plans to cut business rates for pubs and bars.
Charlotte Broadbent, UK GM at online wholesale marketplace Faire, comments: “Independent retailers are often the businesses that bring the most character, footfall and prosperity to our high streets and in a world where so much of daily life happens behind a screen, help make a place feel like somewhere special.
“Business rates have been one of independent retailers’ biggest fixed financial burdens, so we fully welcome any support from our new prime minster to help bring them down. The shopkeepers using Faire in towns and villages across the country tell me that even modest reductions in their costs could lead to more ambitious and creative product ranges, new jobs and greater investment in their communities.
“We would also urge Andy Burnham and local leaders to consider the wider conditions independent shops need to thrive. Whether it be more affordable and accessible parking, stronger support from councils or more investment in town centres, the future success of our high streets will be shaped as much by a strong sense of place as by the costs and strategies of individual businesses.”
