Supporting High Streets

Bradley Thomas Excerpts

Tuesday 4th November 2025 Commons Chamber

[Andrew Griffith]

My right hon. Friend is absolutely right. One only has to look at the wording of the motion we are debating and that of the Government amendment. We Conservatives talk about lifting burdens, removing business rates, cutting red tape, and taking more action to address crime on our high streets. The Labour party talks about compulsory purchase, more grants and more subsidies—it is not interested in lifting the burden on business.

[Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

Does my hon. Friend agree that the Government present an illusion of choice? I will give him a very brief example. Two weeks ago, I met the owners of a business in my constituency—a young couple who own a hospitality business. They have two young children; one is three weeks old. They are buying a new house, and have said to me that because of the pressures bearing down on them as a result of choices made by this Government, they fear for the future of their business, which may have to close next year. Is it not the case that the Government are giving people an illusion of a choice, when in reality they are stifling the economy?

[Andrew Griffith]

My hon. Friend is absolutely right, and the choices that businesses face are enormously difficult. Every single day, they have to ask themselves whether they should put up prices to try to claw back some of the damage—some of that £25 billion cost—thereby increasing inflation and keeping interest rates higher for longer, pushing up the cost of living. Do they reduce the number of employees or the hours per employee, or do they simply fold in the face of disincentives, a lack of support and headwinds rather than tailwinds? Do they shut up shop before the Chancellor’s next intervention heaps on more and more burdens?

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[Miatta Fahnbulleh]

I hope that when the shadow Minister stands up, he will respond to that question and say whether the Conservative party will return the money.

In the end, we need investment in our communities. That is what we are providing, whether it is by reducing business rates or through the work of my Department for Business and Trade colleagues to deliver the backing your business plan, a long-term strategy for supporting small and medium-sized enterprises and the everyday economy. As part of that, family-run businesses on the high street will benefit from new tools to unlock access to finance, action to crack down on late payments—we know that is a massive issue for SMEs—and easier access to the business growth service.

[Bradley Thomas]

Will the Minister give way?

[Miatta Fahnbulleh]

I will make progress.

Hon. Members have mentioned retail crime. We have scrapped effective immunity for low-value shoplifting, and we are taking action to protect retail workers from assault. Alongside the Employment Rights Bill, which we are proud of, that will make retail a more desirable career choice, improve retention and make recruitment clearer. We are very clear that employment rights are good for workers, but also for businesses and for the economy.

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[Bradley Thomas (Bromsgrove) (Con)]

For decades, high streets have been more than a place to shop. They are a barometer of the economic and social vitality of the country and of the communities where they are located. They are a gauge of whether we are prospering or declining. They are the sweet spot on the Venn diagram of societal indicators and policy areas including economic confidence, aspiration, entrepreneurship, crime and confidence in policing, the prominence of institutions, the quality of the public realm and changing social habits.

Today, however, high streets across the country face existential threats from unaffordable costs, dwindling footfall, surging illicit activity and a loss of purpose. I know that that sentiment is not just mine; it is shared by many. An August 2025 UKHospitality survey revealed that 42% of people nationwide believed that their high street was worse than it was a year ago, with that statistic rising to 55% in suburban areas.

High streets are the cornerstone of British history. Their decline is not just economic; it is cultural. Their disappearance is a stark signal that the identity of many communities is also changing and, in many cases, eroding. In 2024, an average of 38 shops or stores closed every single day, with independent retailers accounting for 85% of those closures. We are allowing our proudly owned family-run shops and ambitious independents to be replaced by a sea of cheap e-vape outlets, barbers, charity shops and unregulated aesthetic clinics, many of which are linked to the black market.

[Ian Roome (North Devon) (LD)]

So much of this debate focuses on high streets under a magnifying glass. In my constituency, one in five people work in the retail or wholesale sector. Does the hon. Gentleman agree that if our shop fronts were a factory or a shipyard, the Government would be framing the challenge very differently?

[Bradley Thomas]

I agree with the hon. Member. Earlier, the hon. Member for South Devon (Caroline Voaden) made the point that because the losses in retail are dispersed thinly across the country, this erosion takes place in plain sight, but if the same thing were happening in an industry with a collective centre in one location, it would probably be viewed differently.

Our town centres need essential services such as banking hubs to compensate for the decrease in bank branches between 2010 and 2023, so that people of all generations can manage their finances. We need the heart of our cities, towns and villages to be restored and to thrive once again.

Let us look at the environment in which businesses are operating. National insurance changes hit sectors hard last year, and those that provide accessible careers, including hospitality, were hit hardest. Employers have to pay thousands of pounds more just to recruit people compared with a year and a half ago, and hospitality has seen job losses at the expense of some of the lowest paid in society, who have been unable to get a foot on the employment ladder. We know the economy is underperforming, and there were tax hikes of £40 billion in the Budget last year. The Chancellor promised that last year’s Budget was a one-off hit of a kind that would not be replicated again in this Parliament, yet the Government are facing the reality of their own choices, and their economic naiveté plays out once again.

A typical pub in my constituency pays £2,000 per month in additional costs, including hiked business rates, employment costs and, crucially, energy costs compared with this time last year. To put that into perspective, if a couple go to a pub and spend £80 on dinner and drinks, that pub would have to serve an extra 25 such bookings each month just to cover those additional costs. That is staggering. I speak to so many publicans and hospitality operators in my patch who tell me that next year is the critical year when they will have to decide whether to close their doors for good. They are literally on the brink and questioning their own survival.

There are other points that I want the Government to focus on and the Minister to address, particularly around the public realm. I would like the Government to focus acutely on how we can revitalise the quality of our public realm. That includes design codes, which should be mandatory for all local authorities. One of this Government’s first acts last year was to abandon the need for beautiful design as part of the national planning policy framework and to close the Office for Place. That is important, because if the quality of the public realm decays, our town centres will not be as attractive as they might otherwise be for private sector investment. With the closure of prominent banks on the high street, large historic buildings, which are often anchor points, fall into disarray and it is much harder to get occupants. That is why I am pleased to support the Conservative proposal to abolish business rates for pubs, shops and hospitality. That would be a real shot in the arm for high streets up and down the country.

I am conscious of time, but I would like to touch on one other point that has not yet been mentioned, relating to the role that local councils can play. Local councils are great at kickstarting local economic activity, but for them to be empowered to act as catalysts in their local areas, we need to address the elephant in the room that is adult social care. While the Government focus on local government reorganisation, I implore them to think about that. The hon. Member for Calder Valley (Josh Fenton-Glynn) shakes his head, but the reality is—

[Josh Fenton-Glynn (Calder Valley) (Lab)]

I welcome the hon. Member’s new interest in adult social care. The Dilnot report was delivered in 2011. What were the Conservatives doing for the subsequent 13 years while they were in government and not delivering meaningful change to social care?

[Bradley Thomas]

That is a bit of a cheap jibe. If the hon. Member takes a look through Hansard, he will realise that I have taken an interest in social care for some time.

The reality is that councils across the country spend circa £7 out of every £10 on social care. It is important that society spends money on social care, but while the Government focus on local government reorganisation and social care continues to be a huge financial obligation for local authorities, less money can be spent on the public realm. We have to address that. We must address the long-term positioning of social care, where it is funded, and from which pot, in order to support councils and give them the best possible foundation for addressing the economic needs of their areas.

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[Matt Vickers (Stockton West) (Con)]

I thank the shadow Business and Trade Secretary, my hon. Friend the Member for Arundel and South Downs (Andrew Griffith), for ably setting out the Conservative case for restoring our high streets, and the costs and consequences of the Government’s decisions. As a former Woolies worker, and having chaired the all-party parliamentary group on the future of retail, I am particularly passionate about our high streets and their role as the lifeblood of our local communities.

We have heard brilliant examples from right hon. and hon. Members of fantastic high-street businesses in their communities. Few will be as incredible as those in Yarm, Stockton and Thornaby, but valid points were made. We heard about the huge threat to the full English in greasy spoon cafés across the country, but price rises for mushrooms, tomatoes and bacon pale into significance when compared with Labour’s slashing of small business rates relief, its job tax and its unemployment rights Bill. From Bognor Regis to Windsor, and from Doncaster to Crewe, we see the butcher’s, the baker’s and—less frequently—the candlestick maker’s. Our high streets apparently offer everything, from wigs to corned beef and spam, and Members are rightly clearly proud of them.

One of the messages we have heard today is, “Shop local and support local small businesses,” but another message was heard loud and clear. It probably came from Members on both sides of the Chamber. It is a message that is familiar to any Member who engages with local small businesses: our high streets face an existential threat, and the problem is compounded by the choices of this Government. We are a nation of shopkeepers.

[Bradley Thomas]

My hon. Friend is making a good point. As I often point out to my constituents when talking about the future of the high street—the situation will be similar in other constituencies—there are approximately 50,000 households in my constituency, and if each one of those spends £5 per week supporting a local business, that is £1 million per month that stays in the local economy. If we multiply that, it becomes quite powerful support for local businesses, and helps their long-term vitality.

[Matt Vickers]

It is a clear message: “Stop scrolling through Amazon, and go buy local—it’ll benefit your local economy greatly.”

High streets define places. Their success allows us to feel pride in our towns. They are a place where people come together. They help us to tackle social isolation, and they are often the place where people get their first job, and their last. The retail, hospitality and leisure sector employs 5.8 million people, and generates billions of pounds for our economy.