Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, what steps he is taking to identify the types of anchor institutions on the high street that are effective at supporting highs street growth.

This Government is committed, through the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill, to reinvigorate high streets and town centres.

We want to see thriving town centres and high streets. Government has taken strong action by cutting business rates for many retail, hospitality and leisure properties and providing billions in regeneration funding, however more is needed to help places to reinvent their high streets and town centres.

High Street Rental Auctions will seek to increase cooperation between landlords and local authorities to make town centre tenancies more accessible and affordable for tenants, including SMEs and community groups.

Rental rates reflecting market value will allow a broad spectrum of tenants to occupy town centre properties, who might otherwise not have been able to afford higher rents. For example, local SMEs and community groups. In turn this will increase vitality, footfall, pride in place and business growth.