10th Nov 2015 06:35
LONDON (Alliance News) - Tesco PLC's chief executive attacked the business rates system of property taxes in the UK as "unsustainable" and in need of "urgent reform" when speaking at the Confederation of British Industry Conference on Monday, the Financial Times reported.
Dave Lewis said over the past five years, property values have fallen and profit has dropped, but business rates have increased "quietly but dramatically". He added the GBP8.0 billion a year paid by UK retailers accounted for more than a quarter of the rates bill and was significantly higher than any other sectors.
As a result, Lewis said retailers are facing a "potentially lethal cocktail" from business rates and the introduction of the National Living Wage, an effective minimum wage for workers in the UK over the age of 25.
https://next.ft.com/content/8526c00a-8702-11e5-9f8c-a8d619fa707c
By Sam Unsted; [email protected]; @SamUAtAlliance
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