The British Property Federation has criticised government plans to help high streets as being ‘too little, too late’, saying they focus on Labour heartlands.
John Denham, the secretary of state for Communities and Local Government, has launched a £3m fund to help 57 local authorities find creative ways to use their empty shops and re-open them as facilities for communities. Each council will receive a grant of more than £50,000 to use, for example encouraging empty shops to be used for music practice, a meeting place or a showroom for local artists.
‘The word "enterprise" is conspicuously absent from the proposals,’ the BPF said today.
The spread of funding also prioritises Labour councils and ignores areas with high vacancy rates simply because they’re not classified as ‘deprived’, the federation added.. According to information from the Local Data Company publicised by the BPF, there is a far broader spread of town centres with high levels of empty shops across the country, including many in areas such as London and the south east, that will not get help.
Similar moves by Denham's predecessor Hazel Blears to move artists into shops were dismissed by both the property and creative industries.
'First we had Hazel Blears’ craft fair solution and now we have £50,000 hand outs that are barely a drop in the ocean compared to the extent of the problem,’ said Ian Fletcher, BPF director of commercial policy.
‘The £3m pot is dwarfed by the additional taxation being raked in through empty property taxes and a host of other new taxes on occupiers. The allocation of funds also seems highly skewed towards Labour councils, rather those with greatest vacancy rates.
‘However worthwhile supporting creative industries may be, it will only ever scratch the surface of this issue. The word 'enterprise' is conspicuously absent from the release and announcements. Any package should include Government measures to encourage new businesses into our town centres.’