Can we save the high street?

Over the past year, retail businesses have been clobbered. Tortoise’s journalism has revealed that some towns have seen till takings drop by one-third over the past year. Despite all the support for companies, the pandemic which has left companies struggling with lots of extra debt – and it is small businesses which are most vulnerable to this overhang. What should we do next to shore up our town centres? More grants? More loans? Should we just let the market do its thing – or is it time to think radically. Nationalising small businesses? Moving institutions into employee ownership?