Small businesses in Islington are struggling to cope with huge Government increases in business rates bills that could see many forced to close or to move out of the borough.

More than 200 Islington businesses have closed over the last 18 months.

98% of all businesses in the borough are small or micro businesses employing fewer than 50 people. They are the lifeblood of our neighbourhoods, high streets and town centres. Small businesses are more likely to contribute to the local economy by employing local people and investing in their community. Independent shops and business also help maintain the unique character of local areas.

The Government needs to help small businesses now, by reducing the amount small businesses in Islington have to pay permanently. 

In 2017, the Government revalued what every business had to pay. This saw Islington’s businesses hit with the third highest increases in England, and average increases of 42%!  

As business representatives and the local council, we are deeply concerned about the impact business rates are having on local small businesses, especially when combined with rising rents.

We worked together in 2016 to secure some discounts for local firms, but the Government needs to provide more support.

Please sign the petition to call on the Government to –

• Support small businesses in Islington by permanently cutting business rates bills
• Make business taxes fairer by making multi-national online businesses pay their fair share.
• Carry out a fundamental review of the business rates system to create a fairer system for small businesses.

This petition is organised by Islington Chamber of Commerce and is supported by Islington Council.

Islington Chamber was established in 1929 and is one of the few remaining independent chambers in London. As a non-profit organisation, our primary objective is to protect and promote the interests of Islington’s businesses in order to facilitate business growth and provide a platform for members to share expertise, contacts and news. We feel these changes have had a real negative impact on the businesses in the borough and our town centres are in danger of collapse. We need your support to help us be heard

Islington Council helps local small businesses to check, challenge and appeal unfair decisions on business rates. The council also supports town centre groups to improve local areas and has started to provide genuinely affordable workspace for new start-ups and small businesses.

Update following 29th October National Budget -

It’s welcome that our campaigning over the last two years has helped force the Government to recognise that their existing business rates system is crippling local small businesses.

The temporary reduction in rate bills for retailers is welcome, but it’s short-term. Without fundamental reform of the system, local firms will be at the mercy of the next Government revaluation in 2021, which is likely to see bills rise even further.

At the very least, businesses need the Government to make this temporary discount permanent, or follow our calls to permanently raise Small Business Rate Relief, which would help hundreds of Islington’s smaller businesses, many of which are struggling to survive on the high street.

The Chamber of Commerce’s petition is off to a great start, but businesses still need people’s support to keep the pressure on Government to overhaul the business rates system and make business taxes fairer by making multi-national online businesses pay their fair share.