Hospitality ‘facing devastating £900m business rates hike’

Hospitality businesses will face a £3.6b bill next April if business rates increase in line with inflation and current relief is ended, according to UKHospitality.

The trade body said the bill would be an increase of £900m, on top of the £2.7b the sector currently pays in business rates.

Ahead of the autumn statement this week, UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls has urged the chancellor to extend business rates relief for the sector and ditch any plans to increase rates in line with inflation.

With the sector already grappling with record inflation, rising energy costs, staffing challenges and reduced consumer appetite, UKHospitality said increased rates bill of this scale would prove “fatal for many businesses”.

Nicholls said: “Hospitality has been hit harder than any other sector by inflation, with many already struggling to pay their bills. To increase business rates bills by a third and hang a £900m millstone around the neck of the sector would cause devastation.

“Our pubs, bars, restaurants, coffee shops and hotels, to name a few, are so often the pillars of our community and we would lose countless venues if this went ahead. For those that do survive, they would sadly have no option but to pass those unprecedented costs onto customers.

“The government clearly understands the pressures the sector is under due to rising costs and I would urge it not to compound issues by rising bills further. What it needs to do to ensure the sector survives is extend the current relief for the entire sector and ditch any plans to increase rates in line with inflation.”

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