Eight weeks to save the nation's pubs and restaurants from Armageddon

The eight-week countdown to the next quarterly rent instalment begins today, according to the #RaiseTheBar campaign.

Figures released by #RaiseTheBar, show 54,638 businesses from pubs to shops, restaurants, cafes, bars, hotels, galleries and gyms are currently unable to access the £25,000 RHLG grant due to their business rates valuation falling between £51,000 - £150,000.

Plans for a £617m discretionary fund announced by Government on 2 May do not go far enough according to industry bodies, associations and business owners across the UK, with no guarantees local authorities will issue relief.

Matthew Sims, CEO, Croydon BID and co-founder of #RaiseTheBar campaign said: “Access to the RHLG grant is a ticking time bomb for tens of thousands of businesses on our High Streets and in our local communities. There are just eight weeks until rent is due and the prospect of going under is an uncomfortable truth the Government needs to hear and act upon now. The consequences of failing to increase the business rates threshold are too grim to bear.”

Sign the petition to increase rateable value grant cap to £150k for businesses

The Government has made clear that this fund is for specific purposes, none of which support businesses with a rateable value between £51,000 to £150,000. The #RaiseTheBar campaign estimates a maximum of £1.365bn in Government support is needed to enable the RHLG grant to support all 54,638 businesses falling within a business rates threshold of £51,000 to £150,000.

As part of the RHLG guidance, only those in the retail, hospitality, leisure and assembly sectors with a business rates value of up to £51,000 can access the vital grant, leaving tens of thousands of businesses stranded. The #RaiseTheBar campaign, launched on 21 April 2020, is calling on the Government to raise the arbitrary £51,000 business rates threshold cap to £150,000, allowing over 54,638 businesses in these sectors the chance to survive.

Claire Alexander, owner The Ebrington Arms and The Killingworth Castle in the Cotswolds said “We were utterly floored when the announcement to save hospitality turned out to mean next to nothing for us because we pay too much in business rates. 9,000 pubs like ours are currently left out and the face of the British pub will change forever if it is not extended. We are the main employer in our villages, responsible for the wages of 47 families but we stand to lose everything as we have been abandoned by the grant scheme and its arbitrary cut off point as our business rates are £75,000 and £72,000. The Government has effectively said my business, my staff and the best pubs in the UK aren’t worth saving.”

The #RaiseTheBar campaign believes access to the £25,000 is the difference between survival and bankruptcy for businesses on High Streets across England and Wales, which have welcomed an outpouring of support from the public during lockdown choosing to support their local communities.

The grant will enable businesses to mitigate significant stock losses and cashflow challenges, including rent, that wage subsidies do not address. Many businesses are not in a position to take on further debt or have serious misgivings about being able to survive the recovery and service loans. Other cash pressures include suppliers, service charges and the cost of re-opening to repurchase stock and ongoing running costs.

Photo credit:  #RaiseTheBar