A CUT in business rates for small retailers, as announced in the chancellor’s Budget on Monday, would give Tavistock’s high street ‘a boost’, according to a town enhancement group — but some local retailers say it is not enough.

Chancellor Philip Hammond announced a business rate relief package for small retailers, knocking a third off business rates for firms with a rateable value of £51,000 or less over two years. The measure is hoped to benefit 90% of independent shops, pubs and restaurants, cutting up to £8,000 off their bills. He also promised an injection of £650-million to rejuvenate high streets.

Following the announcement, Tavistock BID (Business Improvement District) — a consortium of town centre businesses which look to improve trading in the town — said it was ‘great news’.

A spokesperson for Tavistock BID said: ‘A reduction in business rates for smaller retailers is great news for the high street and will directly affect many of the wonderful independent shops in Tavistock.

‘This will give businesses a much-needed boost in these economically challenging times.’

Penny Samuels, owner of Brocante in Brook Street, said: ‘This will directly affect us. We were expecting a business rates freeze at best and a rise of 2.4 percent at worst so this is very welcome news indeed, especially when trading for a small, independent shop is so difficult in the current economic climate.’

However, although agreed that it was a welcome move, some businesses in Tavistock felt that not enough was being done to level out the playing field, with small businesses that pay no rates at all and online retailers which pay relatively minimal rates.

Sharron Wilkie, from Image Clothing, said: ‘My business rates are outrageous. It is good that they have done this but they have not addressed the issue that some businesses don’t pay at all.

‘Every little helps but they haven’t done enough. They haven’t addressed the issue of the huge online retailers that pay very little — we need to address the balance. We need more of a reduction. There should be a better system.’

Keith Hall, from Dartmoor Photographic, said he would invest the money saved from the reduction in rates in new equipment for the shop. He echoed the feeling that more should be done to make the market even. He said: ‘I feel that everyone should pay business rates. If everyone paid something and they reduced those already paying, it would be more fair. What difference that would make to the high street, I don’t know.’

Juliet Doolan, owner of Quirky, said: ‘It is very welcome — it will be helpful but on the other hand the living wage is going up so we will have to pay out more on staffing.

‘I think what can look good on paper at first doesn’t always work out when you’re having to pay out extra in other areas, it almost cancels out.

‘Unless they want to lose high street retail from British culture, they need to do more. This is just helping to alleviate the immediate problem but won’t help much in the long run. I’m pleased and grateful, but it won’t make a massive impact.

‘Tavistock is certainly not in the same boat as other areas but generally high street retail is really, really hard.’

Also announced in the Budget was an increase in the personal tax allowance threshold, an increase in the National Living Wage to £8.21 an hour, an extra £160-million for counter-terrorism police, an extra £1-billion for armed forces, for cyber-capabilities and the UK’s new nuclear submarine programme, the contribution of small companies to apprenticeship levy reduced from 10% to 5%, confirmation of an extra £20.5-billion for the NHS over the next five years, a one-off ‘bonus’ to help schools buy ‘the little extras they need’ this year, a £30-billion package for England’s roads, including repairs to motorways and potholes, a 30% growth in infrastructure spending, £60-million for planting trees in England and £10-million to deal with abandoned waste sites, among other things.

Mr Hammond also announced in the Budget plans to scrap business rates for all public toilets.

West Devon Borough Council (WDBC) is currently undertaking consultations with a view to devolving responsibilty of the public toilet facilities in the borough to town and parish councils in a bid to save £50,000 from next year’s budget.

Cllr Robert Sampson, lead member for commercial services at WDBC said: ‘The Government’s announcement that public toilets will no longer have to pay business rates is indeed welcome news. However, this will not come into effect until the 2020/21 financial year and therefore has very little impact on our current financial position.

‘West Devon Borough Council still feels that the best value for money may be found by transferring public toilets to town and parish councils and we will continue to work with them to try to achieve that and to keep as many facilities operating as possible.’