Brigg and Goole MP Andrew Percy has welcomed an announcement by the new Lib Dem and Conservative government to freeze the collection of controversial back-dated taxes on port businesses. The decision to implement these taxes by the previous Labour government threatened hundreds of jobs in the Goole area alone, and thousands more across the Humber ports.
The new government has announced that £50 million for action to tackle backdated business rates bills, including a freeze on payments for 2010-11.
Andrew says, "Labour Ministers ignored this issue for months, despite warnings that hundreds of jobs here in Goole could be lost. In contrast, the new coalition government has been able to freeze the collection of these back dated taxes after only a matter of days in government.
This is excellent news for Goole and I now look forward to working with Ministers to try to find a new system of business rates which are acceptable to all parties and which protect local jobs."