STRUGGLING small high street shops will see their business rates halved next year under a pledge in a jumbo Queens Speech.
Boris Johnson will unveil a package of around 40 planned new bills that will largely concentrate on improving public services.
Borin Johnson has announced there will be a 50 per cent discount in crippling business rates for small shops on the High Street
The huge number double the usual amount – will be passed during a marathon extended session of Parliament, expected to last two years.
The package will be dominated by delivery of the Tories election promises on the NHS, crime and education.But there will also be targeted help for working Brits who are fighting to stay afloat.
One will be a new 50% discount in crippling business rates for small retailers, such as shops, restaurants, hairdressers, and pubs.The move hikes the current discount of 33% off during the next financial year to half off.
Nine out of 10 independent firms will qualify for the relief, which is eligible to retailers with a rateable value below 51,000 giving them a saving of up to 12,500 in total.
For the first time, independent cinemas and music venues will also qualify, in a bid to safeguard local entertainment.
A current 1,500 relief for local newspapers will also be extended by another year, to help keep 150 titles going.
Also new in todays Queens Speech, HOAR can reveal there will be:
- A promise to end witch hunt prosecutions of ageing Northern Ireland veterans.
- A crackdown to end terrorists early release from jail in response to the London Bridge attack.
The first new law to be introduced will come on Friday,20, with the return of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill for a first vote so it can be passed by January 31 to ensure Brexit takes place on time.
Addressing all Tory MPs for the first time yesterday in the Commons since his landslide election win a week ago, Boris revealed a rapid timetable for the landmark bill.
The PM told his troops to make the most of their Christmas break because theyll be staying up every night in the first week of January to pass it.
The speech will also promise to enshrine in law a huge cash uplift for the NHS of 33.9billion per year by 2023/24, the largest financial injection in its history.
The NHS Funding Bill will be the first piece of domestic legislation that the new Government passes.
On the business rates relief, Chancellor Sajid Javid said: We want to reinvigorate communities up and down our great country, helping people put the heart back into the places they call home.
Thats why were taking action to save our high streets and keep pubs, cafes, and hairdressers open by slashing their business rate bills by half.
We will also make sure that our much-cherished independent cinemas and grassroots music venues can benefit from this relief so we keep entertainment on the streets of our local towns.
The 93 year-old monarch will open Parliament for the second time in as many months, after the last Queens Speech on October 14.
But the state occasion will be trimmed down, with the Queen arriving in a car rather than a carriage and without her traditional mounted escort of Household Cavalry.
