Political opinion with Andrew Griffith MP: Flooding, and welcome, if belated, climbdown on business rates for pubs
The wet weather in January has been relentless, with rainfall up to twice as much on usual January levels. I know that residents in Barnham and Eastergate have been especially disrupted with traffic being re-routed because of flooding and potholes.
As I write, the Environment Agency have issued flood warnings for Fittleworth on the Western River Rother and Pulborough on the River Arun. The risk to properties and businesses is a concern and I am meeting with the Environment Agency next week to discuss their response to incidents.
The Government’s partial U-turn on plans to hike business rates for pubs is a welcome, if belated, climbdown. The previous proposals set out by the Government would have forced many pubs to shut their doors for good. This reversal did not happen by accident and is a clear reminder of why applying pressure in opposition matters. I will continue to stand up for pubs, landlords and businesses, and it was this pressure that eventually led many Labour MPs to realise the damage these tax hikes would inflict on their own high streets.
However, this semi-U-turn is only a sticking-plaster solution. Just 6 per cent of retail, leisure and hospitality firms will actually benefit from Labour’s changes, and even then the average independent pub will still be paying around £5,300 more in business rates. Thousands of shops, cafés, hotels and small businesses are still staring down the barrel of punishing increases - before they have served a single customer. Under Labour, rates for shops are rising by 259 per cent, restaurants by 267 per cent and hotels by a staggering 398 per cent. This is stealth taxation, and Labour knows it.
Lastly, I wanted to reflect on public service and those who set a remarkable standard for it. I was saddened to hear of the death of Howard Flight, later Lord Flight, one of my predecessors as Member of Parliament for Arundel and South Downs. He was a serious parliamentarian, respected across the House of Commons and later in the House of Lords, and someone who believed deeply in economic responsibility and proper scrutiny of government. He gave many years of dedicated service to Parliament and to West Sussex, and he will be dearly missed by colleagues on all sides.