6. To ask the Scottish Government what impact its budget will have on city centre recovery and small businesses. (S6O-02963)

The Scottish Government’s £685 million non-domestic rates relief package will see the small business bonus scheme being maintained and continuing to be the most generous scheme of its kind across the United Kingdom. The basic property rate has been frozen at 49.8p, and more than 95 per cent of non-domestic properties will continue to be liable for a lower property tax rate than such properties elsewhere across these islands.

The commitment to the £1.9 billion city region and regional growth deals remains, with the forthcoming budget providing £203 million to support them and the work of the Scottish Cities Alliance.

The Scottish Retail Consortium has said that the Scottish budget will cause “self-inflicted economic harm” and that its plan for a new levy

“smacks of incoherent policy-making within Government”.

All that comes on top of the Scottish National Party’s failure to pass on the 75 per cent rates relief to retail businesses. [

Interruption

.]

The Presiding Officer:

Let us hear the member.

Does the minister accept that the cumulative effect will stifle the economy, further hinder the retail sector, prevent city centre recovery and, ultimately, pass additional costs on to Scottish consumers?

The measure that the member outlined is currently subject to a consultation. We will listen to all views, including the member’s, and we will await the outcome of that consultation before moving forward.

This is another example of a Conservative MSP complaining about some of the budget proposals after the dismal budget settlement that the Scottish Government received from the Conservative UK Government. I urge the member and her colleagues to put as much pressure as possible on their Conservative colleagues in the UK Government to recognise the extraordinary pressures that Scotland and our budget are under as a result of those UK policies, so that we can address some of those concerns.

Scotland’s small businesses are facing higher energy costs, labour shortages due to Brexit, and the impact of inflation on goods and services due to United Kingdom Tory Government mismanagement of the economy. Given the paltry consequentials that the Scottish Government has received, which severely limits its ability to repair some of that damage, what continued calls is the minister making to the UK Government to provide further much-needed support?

Gordon MacDonald raises an important issue. The latest data from the business insights and conditions survey show that the main concerns for businesses in December 2023 were energy prices, which is an issue reserved to the UK Government; falling demand, which is influenced by policies at UK Government level; and inflation in the cost of goods and services, which is influenced by Tory economic mismanagement at the UK level.

The Scottish Government is raising those and other issues with the UK Government. For example, we are calling on the UK Government to help with the costs by introducing a VAT reduction for business energy bills, and for it to make changes to the skilled worker visa provision, reduce VAT for the tourism and hospitality sector, and act on a number of other issues, so that the UK can step in and help the Scottish business community. I hope that the UK Government will do that sooner rather than later.