Business rates taking a terrible toll on our towns and cities: SDLP MLA

The SDLP is determined to shape that future based on the principles of social justice, a fairer society and environmental sustainability, while offering more opportunities. That is why we have launched our Four Principles for Economic Recovery.

Covid-19 will particularly affect young adults and children still at school. Without careful management, existing barriers and divisions within our society based on wealth and class will be widened.

Our young adults need our support to improve their skills, via a big increase in apprenticeships and student places in our universities. This will help today’s students obtain well paid and productive work in the future, while boosting the economy for the benefit of us all.

The SDLP is calling for a new localism – recognising that our locally owned shops helped us get through the pandemic’s first wave. We need to strengthen our local communities, supporting local businesses, just as they supported us.

We want to use this opportunity to improve the places in which we live and work, including through a big boost for childcare provision and early years learning.

We need to strengthen our communities in other ways by improving broadband to reduce isolation and investing in better road and rail links. We must also give our institutions new powers.

This must include new ways to raise money that enable us to phase out our reliance on business rates, which are a terrible burden on many city and town centre shops. We have to be determined to do things differently in the future.

The SDLP wants to see progress and development, creating new jobs leading to a more productive, higher skilled and more satisfied society. Our Four Principles for Economic Recovery would produce exactly this.

Sinead McLaughlin MLA, SDLP economy spokesperson

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