The Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) has repeated its call on the Holyrood government to drop plans to impose a new tax on large supermarket chains.
With finance secretary John Swinney pushing for a new levy on big-name retailers selling alcohol and tobacco, the SRC has warned his proposal could deter investment and job creation in the industry. MSPs from across the political spectrum have also raised concerns about the move.
“The proposed supermarket levy is an unprecedented policy which would use the business rates system to impose extra taxes on a handful of businesses in the guise of a public health measure,” said SRC director Ian Shearer. “Retailers are worried about the threat such a tax would pose.”
Mr Shearer also suggested that other sectors had expressed some anxiety and warned that if the Edinburgh administration presses ahead with the tax, Scotland’s reputation as being business-friendly could be seriously damaged.
However, Mr Swinney last week rejected claims that the levy could hamper economic growth and insisted it was a “sustainable and affordable intervention” which would not cost retail jobs.
