The Charity Retail Association has said responses to the Welsh government's consultation on reducing business rates relief for charity shops demonstrate widespread concern about the proposal.
The Welsh government has released a summary of the responses to its review of business rates relief for the country’s charity shops today.
Summary of Consultation Responses: Business rates relief for charities and social enterprises compiles 74 reactions to recommendations made by the independent report on improving Welsh high streets, whose suggestions included cutting the mandatory business rates charity shops chains enjoy.
Key recommendations
The document summarises the respondents’ views on ten key recommendations (as well as other issues raised in the consultation). These include:
- Opposition to a new planning class that would reduce the number of charity shops (but further consideration is needed).
- Suggestions about how to bring long-term empty properties into use, including that businesses occupying a retail property that has been vacant for 12 months or more could receive 50 per cent rate relief for two years, and be able to apply to the local authority have this extended.
- Tackling tax avoidance: all commercial premises that are occupied and used for charitable purposes could be subject to an upper rateable value limit of £36,000.
- Much condemnation of the idea of creating new thresholds for charity shop rate relief to limit the amount available.
The responses are available both in full and in summary form on the Welsh government’s website.
The Task and Finish Group which compiled the original report is made up of representatives covering a range of business and public sector backgrounds. It is chaired by Professor Brian Morgan, professor of entrepreneurship at the University of Wales.
CRA: ‘summary acknowledges concerns’
The Charity Retail Association (CRA), itself one of the 74 respondents, said that the document does a good job of summing up the anxiety many feel about the business rates proposals.
“This summary of consultation responses acknowledges widespread concerns about the evidence base for the report,” the CRA said in a statement.
“In particular, responses reference the lack of any assessment as to how the proposals will affect charities and the services they provide to Welsh communities. They also criticise the unevidenced assumption that charity shops create market distortions and are a problem on the high street.”
The CRA also pointed out the large number of responses that argued that restricting rate relief would have respectively “a significant negative impact on charities” and “a major and negative impact on charity retail in Wales”.
Eight in favour; 22,600 against
The statement continued: “In the last consultation only eight respondents supported the changes proposed to restrict charity shop rate relief. Conversely, over 22,600 people in Wales signed our petition asking the Welsh government not to restrict charity shop rate relief, showing the strength of public feeling on this issue.
“We now hope to work with the Welsh government and Welsh local authorities to build on this and develop a set of proportionate recommendations which do not penalise charity shops unfairly.”
Most of the responses to the consultation (44, or 59 per cent) came from charities such as Cancer Research UK and British Red Cross, as well as the wider charity sector – defined by the document as not only those running charity shops but individuals with an interest in charity law or policy and voluntary sector umbrella bodies.
Local authorities contributed 14 responses (19 per cent), with five coming from social enterprises and the rest from a range of disparate sources, such as housing organisations and political groups.
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