Call for positive action to revive high street
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Radical action – including the creation of enterprise zones, the compulsory purchase of derelict stores and rent-free deals – is required to revive the UK's ailing high streets, the head of the British Retail Consortium said yesterday.
"We all want our high streets to be regenerated, we want them to become thriving places that customers want to go to, but it needs bold action," Rob Templeman, the former chief executive of Debenhams who now chairs the retail lobby group, told Retail Symposium 2012 delegates.
He was critical of a government-sponsored initiative to regenerate high streets involving Mary Portas.
"When you propose projects with £11.5m of funding across 12-15 towns, it's not much good when you have just charged retailers £350m extra for rates," he said. "Government needs to stand up and do something positive about getting growth."
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments