London property chiefs have demanded that Rishi Sunak give an emergency funding package to the capital to avoid countless redundancies when the national coronavirus lockdown lifts.
Signatories including bosses at Landsec, Grosvenor, Shaftesbury and Derwent have written to the chancellor, calling for emergency funding ahead of prime minister Boris Johnson’s announcement of a so-called road map out of lockdown later today.
In the letter seen by EG, they have asked for measures including an extension to the business rates holiday beyond 1 April, the reinstatement of VAT-free shopping for tourists and further city funding calculated according to pre-pandemic commercial activity.
Current grants have been allocated to local areas across the UK based on residential population, but central London figureheads argue that this ignores the region’s mix of low residency and usually high commercial activity.
They have also told the government to apply pressure on banks and financial institutions to give property owners flexibility so they can support tenants effectively.
“Whilst we recognise the government’s commitment to levelling up those parts of the UK suffering from an underlying lack of economic opportunity, we call on HM Treasury to also provide the financial support and flexibility needed to enable London to recover and rebuild, so it can maintain its unique and important role as the nation’s ‘shopfront’,” they wrote.
“Without additional support and a more equitable distribution of funding to help city centres, the government risks squandering much of the welcome efforts of the past year and undermining its plans to reopen the face-to-face economy.”
They also pointed out that ONS data shows that London’s unemployment rate is currently 6.9%, the highest level in the UK.
“In the interests of the UK economy, we urge for the government’s levelling up agenda to support the economic and welfare needs of London, along with all major city centres,” they added.
The letter, organised by the London Property Alliance, was signed by Shaftesbury chief executive Brian Bickell, Derwent London boss Paul Williams, Landsec managing director Marcus Geddes and Grosvenor’s UK chief James Raynor, among others.
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