The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has been urged to keep her promise to ease the pressure from business rates on high street businesses amid warnings of a looming £2.7bn tax hike that would mainly hit smaller retail, leisure and hospitality firms.
More than 252,000 shops, cafes, pubs, restaurants and businesses such as bowling alleys are likely to see a big step up in the property tax from April next year when a 75% relief up to a cap of £110,000 will end, according to analysis from the real-estate intelligence firm Altus Group.
