Darling in business tax u-turn

Businesses will instead see tax rates rise by 2% from 1 April 2009, with the remaining 3% clawed back over the next two years. Rate rises are linked to the Retail Prices Index (RPI) measure of inflation, which has now fallen to 0%. Darling says the move "will provide real and genuine help for businesses in this country". It will see £600m in tax deferred, with 1.5 million businesses set to benefit. Darling's decision to raise business rates had been widely criticised for increasing the tax burden on businesses at a time of recession. IFAonline