Sunshine Tax: The cap doesn't fit!

Thank you all for your support. The petition has now been submitted to Croydon Council. 2,448 valid signatures together with 75 pages of comments have been sent to the Chief Executive of Croydon Council requesting a debate on the Street Trading Fee consultation at the next full council meeting. A copy of the letter is included below: Dear Mr Elvery, Please find enclosed the final petition data relating to the campaign which was supported by many local businesses who will be directly affected by the proposed increases in Street Trading Fees. I have removed all the signatures which did not have a full Croydon postcode included. The final number of signatures obtained from Croydon residents is 2,442. Also enclosed are some 75 pages of comments which were made by those who signed the petition. I understand a petition which has 1,000 or more valid signatures from Croydon residents trigger a debate during a full council meeting. Given the time sensitivity of the matter, I would appeal to you to enable the petition to be heard in the next full council meeting scheduled for April and postpone the planned 1st April fee increase until the petition has been debated. I would be prepared to appear and provide my reasoning and outline other options which may support the councils objectives of increasing revenue from street trading, while doing so more equitably for existing businesses. In the absence of appearing to discuss the matter, I would be happy for this written statement to be used as a substitute. While the introduction of a rate cap as indicated by Cllr Watson is welcome news, it is still the feeling of many small businesses that the cap, in the first year remains too high. A jump of more than 1000% in any cost in a single financial year, announced at the last minute and after most budgets have been set, would be a challenge for most businesses but has a particular sting in its tail for independent businesses, many of whom already struggle to stay in business. These small businesses already need to pay increased private pension contributions, NI contributions, statutory sick pay, holiday pay and a steep stepped increase in the minimum wage. All this while at the same time commercial rents in Croydon are tipped to increase by more than 50% over the next 3-5 years. If this were not a poisonous enough potion for Croydon's independent businesses, we can add the disruption and drop in footfall that will be seen during the multi-billion pound mass reconstruction of the borough which is beginning to get underway. Local businesses are not against you in everything you do. We support the investment and redevelopment of Croydon and we welcome change. But, we need our contribution to be recognised and we need to be protected from the challenges ahead. We are all in this together, after all. Please do not underestimate the challenges that local independent businesses are faced with, particularly in Croydon, nor the contribution that we collectively make to the local economy. If you, like me and the other 2,458 people who signed this petition genuinely believe in the value and diversity which independent local businesses bring to the high street, you will reconsider the impact of this proposed fee increase once again. Perhaps you could consider a less robust approach to enforcement and a more upbeat and proactive approach to sales, spreading the burden of the operating costs among hundreds more businesses would have the same impact for the council, and each and every additional street trading licence issued, would mitigate the impact on Croydon's existing businesses. Thank you all for your time and consideration of this issue once again. Yours faithfully