WH Smith boss urges government to consider extending the business rates holiday

The chief executive of WH Smith has urged the government to extend the business rates holiday as the retailer plunged into the red.

The High Street chain has been hurt by Covid lockdowns and travel restrictions. It has a number of stores at airports and train stations where passenger numbers have significantly fallen this year.

It recorded a statutory pre-tax loss of £226 million for the year to August compared to a £135 million profit the previous year. The underlying loss was £69 million, better than analysts had expected.

Boss Carl Cowling said the High Street business has seen a steady recovery and most of its stores have now reopened. But he added that footfall is still significantly down on the High Street and pre-Covid numbers won’t resume by the end of March when the current business rates holiday ends. He said extending that  would assist a number of companies.