The Liberal Democrats have published a comprehensive blueprint for replacing the broken business rates system, cutting taxes for businesses by 25% in South Lakeland.
Local Lib Dem MP Tim Farron has described the plans as “exactly the sort of policy we need to boost local investment and ensure businesses in the South Lakes thrive”.
The report – Taxing Land, Not Investment – calls for the abolition of business rates and its replacement with a tax on land values, the Commercial Landowner Levy (CLL).
The levy would remove buildings and machinery from calculations and tax only the land value of commercial sites, boosting investment and cutting taxes for businesses.
Liberal Democrat members will debate and vote on the proposals at the party’s Autumn Conference in Brighton next month.
Tim said: “Time and again I have heard concerns about the devastating impact of business rates on struggling high streets and the wider local economy.
“It is the responsibility of the current Conservative Government to ensure that our businesses are able to thrive, but ministers are not doing anywhere near enough.
“Liberal Democrats demand better. That is why we are campaigning to create the environment needed for local businesses to grow and create jobs in the South Lakes.”
