Councils are being urged not to use the powers given to them by the Business Rate Supplement Bill, which received Royal Assent yesterday.

"By allowing this legislation to pass into law, companies will face a situation where decisions on BRS could be taken unilaterally by Local Authorities," said British Chambers of Commerce director-general David Frost.
 
"We urge Councils to listen to local firms and reflecting the current economic climate, decide not to make use of this new power."

Mr Frost said that he found it deeply worrying that during a recession, the Government has decided to introduce a new power for local authorities to raise taxes on cash-starved businesses.

"Companies are already paying business rates, corporation tax, VAT and National Insurance," he said.

"On top of this, they could also be looking at a combination of Business Rate Supplements (BRS), congestion charging and a workplace parking levy.

"The BCC believes that any BRS proposals should only be for necessary infrastructure projects with a business vote on whether to go ahead with the plans."