From their impact on the British economy to weaknesses in the system - UK business rates will be the focus of discussion at the Guardian’s Big Ideas debates at the political party conferences.
With online shopping on the increase and some retailers calling for an overhaul of the current system, these debates will cover the future of UK business rates and how to encourage investment, innovation and growth while boosting our competitiveness on a global scale.
Touching on issues such as whether business rates should be aligned with business performance or property value, and if they constitute a disincentive to invest, the debate will be chaired in a Question Time-style format.
Held at the Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat conferences, these fringe debates will be discussed by a panel bringing perspectives from government and business. They will be reported online and featured across the Guardian over the coming months.
The three events will take place on the Monday evening of the party conferences. The Labour event will be held on Monday 22 September from 7.30pm - 8.45pm in Manchester; the Conservative event on Monday 29 September from 7.30pm - 8.45pm in Birmingham; and the Liberal Democrats on Monday 6 October from 7.45pm - 9pm in Glasgow.
The Big Ideas business rates discussion is sponsored by:
General Motors UK
General Motors UK owns Vauxhall Motors which was established in 1903 and has been building motor vehicles in the UK without a break for 110 years. We are a major contributor to the UK economy, approximately 28,000 people are employed directly or indirectly through the company’s activities.
In the UK we manufacture the Vauxhall/Opel Astra and Astra Sports Tourer at our plant in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire and at our plant in Luton we manufacture the Vauxhall/Opel Vivaro commercial vehicle. Vauxhall’s range spans all mainstream sectors of the vehicle market with best-selling model names such as Corsa, Astra, Meriva, Zafira and Insignia regularly in the top ten of the sales charts.
The British Retail Consortium
The British Retail Consortium is the lead trade association for the whole of the retail industry. This diverse and exciting industry covers large multiples to independents, high streets to out of town and online to bricks, and sells goods across all sectors to ever more demanding consumers. The BRC’s mission is to make a positive difference by advancing vibrant and consumer focused retail. We aim to achieve this by standing for what is important to the industry and working in partnership with our members to shape debates and influence outcomes.
Tata Steel
Tata Steel is Europe’s second largest steel producer, with steelmaking in the UK and Netherlands, and manufacturing plants across Europe. The company supplies products and services to the most demanding markets, including construction, automotive, packaging, rail, lifting & excavating, energy & power and aerospace. The combined Tata Steel group is one of the world’s largest steel producers, with a steel capacity of 29 million tonnes and 80,000 employees across four continents.
