The Minister for Finance has recently changed how business rates are calculated resulting in sharp and sudden increases in bills for pubs, restaurants and hotels, with many facing rates that have doubled or even tripled overnight.
This destructive policy has the potential to close local businesses, cost people their jobs and rip the fabric out of communities across the North.
The Finance Minister, John O’Dowd, must urgently intervene and reverse this policy to protect a hospitality sector that underpins local economies and community life.
The SDLP is calling on the Finance Minister to:
- Engage directly with the hospitality sector and listen to the lived experience of business owners
- Reverse the 'fair maintainable trade' methodology that taxes businesses on turnover rather than profit
- Invest in a thriving hospitality sector rather than implementing measures that will force closures and damage our economy
If the Minister fails to act, we will see more businesses closing in the weeks and months ahead, with real and damaging impact on people's lives and livelihoods.