A view from Plaid Cymru’s North Wales Member of the Senedd

Wrexham.com has invited Wrexham & Clwyd South Members of Parliament and Members of the Senedd to write a monthly article with updates on their work in their respective Parliaments and closer to home – you can find them all here. ​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​ ‌​‌‌​​​‌‍‌​‌​‌‌‌​‍‌​​​‌​‌‌‍‌​​​‌‌​‌‍‌​​‌‌‌‌​‍‌​​‌‌‌​​‍‌​​‌​‌​​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​​‌‌​‌​‍‌​​‌‌‌​​‍‌‌​​‌‌​‌‍‌‌​​‌‌​​

In this month’s column Plaid Cymru’s Llyr Gruffydd MS writes:

Many local businesses are facing a perfect storm at the moment – rising costs (whether it’s energy bills, materials or foodstuff), rising wages, rising rents and rates.

Coupled with reduced spending powers many people are facing because of their own as well as the lack of money available in the public sector due to a decade and more of cuts, then times are becoming very difficult for many in the retail, leisure and hospitality sector.

I met with representatives in those sectors in Wrexham last week to discuss the challenges they face and specifically the impact of the Welsh Government’s intention to reduce the business rate relief from 75% to 40%.

There are particular challenges facing businesses close to the border, such as in Flintshire and Wrexham, that means they are particularly sensitive to such changes that make them less able to compete with businesses in England.

Welsh Government has to recognise the impact such decisions have for these businesses as they struggle to cope with all manner of other challenges.

We need to take a broader look at this issue. In this week’s Senedd debate on business rate relief, Plaid Cymru made it clear that we want to move away from short-term sticking plasters that fail to address the elephant in the room – that huge online businesses and out-of-town retail is paying a fraction of the business rate levels that high street businesses if it were assessed on turnover and profit levels.

The Non-Domestic Rates system simply doesn’t work. NDR hasn’t moved with the times and that’s why we’re now in a situation where we pay relief to businesses rather than reforming the system to benefit that independent sector that is key to our economy.

We talk a lot about town-centre regeneration. That’s always going to be a challenge while this inequitable system exists because high street businesses has traditionally paid a premium in terms of rates.

But out-of-town shopping centres and supermarkets, to pick on just two examples, now have premium sites accessible by car.

So should we now be reviewing the rates that sectors pay, so that, for example, supermarkets pay more into the system in order to lower the amount that a sector like hospitality would pay into the system?

We also need to also address the imbalance between brick-and-mortar businesses and those ones that operate online.

If we don’t change the NDR system quickly, we will face a situation where businesses that we value as corner stones of our towns go under and leave gaping holes.

It’s happening on a daily basis in Wrexham unfortunately – albeit with the welcome addition of other new businesses venturing to start up.

By cutting the level of rate relief, which is said to save £65 million, I wonder how many businesses will be able to absorb that hit?

Because the real fear I have – and it’s shared by those running those businesses – is that those that do go under will not be paying any business rates at all. So where’s the saving in that?