High street guru Mary Portas warned half of shops could close, as she blasted the Tories’ lack of help.
The “Queen of Shops”, a former adviser for David Cameron, said: “I’ve not seen it in the agenda.”
Ms Portas, 62, also called for next week’s Budget to extend the six-month energy price guarantee which caps unit costs.
“This is a big as Covid and we really need help,” she told the Mirror.
Ms Portas spoke out as a survey of independent shops by wholesaler marketplace Ankorstore was released.
It found more than half want a VAT or business rate cut.
Asked what could happen without help, and with a possible long recession looming, Ms Portas warned: “We could lose half of all shops.”
It came as Marks & Spencer warned of a “gathering storm” as it revealed a more than £60million slump in half-year profits.
