Tax rises in autumn would force our prices up, retailers tell Reeves | Retail industry

Rachel Reeves has been warned by Britain’s biggest retailers that tax rises in her autumn budget could trigger higher shop prices, hitting household incomes and the economy.

With high street chains closing stores and cutting jobs, the British Retail Consortium (BRC) said two-thirds of finance directors predicted there would be further price increases over the next year, even before any rise in tax in the autumn budget.

Iceland, Poundland and New Look were among major retailers to announce store closures in recent months, amid business warnings over the impact of tax rises in the chancellor’s first budget.

A survey of retail industry finance directors by the BRC, which represents more than 9,000 stores that employ 300,000 workers, found that 85% had raised prices in response to…