Rate relief proposals for charity shops

Commenting on a government consultation about plans to cut business rate relief for charity shops, Age Cymru's Director of Income Resources Richard Nicholls says:

"We applaud the Welsh Government for looking at the whole issue of enterprise but we firmly believe that focusing on rate increases for charity shops will hinder progress in developing attractive retail areas in Wales.

"Age Cymru is also concerned about proposals to restrict the numbers of charity retail outlets in certain postcodes, as this would place extra demands on charities at a time when they are already under serious pressure.

"It's important to remember that third sector organisations running charity shops are value-driven and motivated by the desire to further social, cultural or environmental objectives, rather than simply to make a profit; and are committed to reinvesting their surpluses to further these objectives.

"Age Cymru operates classic charity shops and social enterprises offering FSA approved financial products and services tailored to meet the needs of older people, and we support the idea of extending the current 80 per cent relief to social enterprises as this might encourage us to expand - for example, our insurance business."