Retailers in London and other British tourist hotspots have been left disappointed after UK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's “hammer blow” decision to reverse the planned reinstatement of tax-free shopping for foreign visitors that his predecessor Kwasi Kwarteng had announced last month.
Tourists' ability reclaim VAT in the UK was abolished on New Year’s Eve in 2020, with the costs of maintaining the rebate after Brexit considered to be disproportionate.
Mr Kwarteng had announced the move in his tax-slashing mini-budget statement in September, which crashed the pound and forced the Bank of England into an emergency gilt-buying spree to the tune of £60 billion ($67bn) in an attempt to calm febrile markets.
It would have meant foreign visitors to the UK could have obtained a 20 per cent refund on goods bought in Britain and exported in their personal baggage.
At the time of the announcement, it was heartily welcomed by luxury fashion and jewellery retailers, whose products are perennially popular with wealthy tourists.
Paul Barnes, chief executive of the Association of International Retail, was one of the loudest cheerleaders for Mr Kwarteng's proposal and called the decision in 2020 to scrap the exemption “devastating” for the industry.
In an “ideal world” tax-free shopping would be back in time for King Charles's coronation on May 6, he said in the aftermath of the mini-budget.
Mr Barnes has now been left seething at Mr Hunt's reversal.
“This short-sighted move is based on inaccurate and incomplete projections,” said Paul Barnes, head of the Association of International Retail, calling the about-turn a “hammer blow to UK tourism and the British high street.”
More dissenting voices from the sector swiftly materialised on Monday.
Helen Brocklebank, chief executive at Walpole, which represents the UK luxury industry, said Walpole expected the plan to deliver at least £1.2 billion ($1.3 billion) in direct retail sales.
“We are disappointed that the government has decided not to proceed with its policy to return tax-free shopping, a policy which will quickly deliver growth,” she said.
“It would have been a significant boost to UK manufacturing, which forms part of the wider ecosystem of the sector and supports jobs across the country.
The British Retail Consortium was also against Mr Hunt’s decision to stick with VAT.
“We are disappointed by the decision on tax-free shopping for tourists, which would have helped strengthen the UK’s position as a top destination for international shoppers,” said Tom Ironside, the BRC’s director of business and regulation.
“This decision leaves the UK as one of the only European countries not to provide a tax-free shopping scheme to encourage tourism.”
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
Profile of VoucherSkout
Date of launch: November 2016
Founder: David Tobias
Based: Jumeirah Lake Towers
Sector: Technology
Size: 18 employees
Stage: Embarking on a Series A round to raise $5 million in the first quarter of 2019 with a 20 per cent stake
Investors: Seed round was self-funded with “millions of dollars”
Innotech Profile
Date started: 2013
Founder/CEO: Othman Al Mandhari
Based: Muscat, Oman
Sector: Additive manufacturing, 3D printing technologies
Size: 15 full-time employees
Stage: Seed stage and seeking Series A round of financing
Investors: Oman Technology Fund from 2017 to 2019, exited through an agreement with a new investor to secure new funding that it under negotiation right now.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
All Blacks line-up for third Test
J Barrett; I Dagg, A Lienert-Brown, N Laumape, J Savea; B Barrett, A Smith; J Moody, C Taylor, O Franks, B Retallick, S Whitelock, J Kaino, S Cane, K Read (capt).
Replacements: N Harris, W Crockett, C Faumuina, S Barrett, A Savea, TJ Perenara, A Cruden, M Fekitoa.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg
Real Madrid (2) v Bayern Munich (1)
Where: Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
When: 10.45pm, Tuesday
Watch Live: beIN Sports HD
Scores in brief:
- New Medical Centre 129-5 in 17 overs bt Zayed Cricket Academy 125-6 in 20 overs.
- William Hare Abu Dhabi Gymkhana 188-8 in 20 overs bt One Stop Tourism 184-8 in 20 overs
- Alubond Tigers 138-7 in 20 overs bt United Bank Limited 132-7 in 20 overs
- Multiplex 142-6 in 17 overs bt Xconcepts Automobili 140 all out in 20 overs
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
The biog
Name: Salvador Toriano Jr
Age: 59
From: Laguna, The Philippines
Favourite dish: Seabass or Fish and Chips
Hobbies: When he’s not in the restaurant, he still likes to cook, along with walking and meeting up with friends.
Tips for SMEs to cope
- Adapt your business model. Make changes that are future-proof to the new normal
- Make sure you have an online presence
- Open communication with suppliers, especially if they are international. Look for local suppliers to avoid delivery delays
- Open communication with customers to see how they are coping and be flexible about extending terms, etc
Courtesy: Craig Moore, founder and CEO of Beehive, which provides term finance and working capital finance to SMEs. Only SMEs that have been trading for two years are eligible for funding from Beehive.
Profile Box
Company/date started: 2015
Founder/CEO: Mohammed Toraif
Based: Manama, Bahrain
Sector: Sales, Technology, Conservation
Size: (employees/revenue) 4/ 5,000 downloads
Stage: 1 ($100,000)
Investors: Two first-round investors including, 500 Startups, Fawaz Al Gosaibi Holding (Saudi Arabia)
Dubai World Cup factbox
Most wins by a trainer: Godolphin’s Saeed bin Suroor(9)
Most wins by a jockey: Jerry Bailey(4)
Most wins by an owner: Godolphin(9)
Most wins by a horse: Godolphin’s Thunder Snow(2)
GAC GS8 Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 248hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 400Nm at 1,750-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 9.1L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh149,900
AGUERO'S PREMIER LEAGUE RECORD
Apps: 186
Goals: 127
Assists: 31
Wins: 117
Losses: 33
Disturbing%20facts%20and%20figures
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E51%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20in%20the%20UAE%20feel%20like%20they%20are%20failing%20within%20the%20first%20year%20of%20parenthood%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E57%25%20vs%2043%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20is%20the%20number%20of%20mothers%20versus%20the%20number%20of%20fathers%20who%20feel%20they%E2%80%99re%20failing%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E28%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20believe%20social%20media%20adds%20to%20the%20pressure%20they%20feel%20to%20be%20perfect%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E55%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20cannot%20relate%20to%20parenting%20images%20on%20social%20media%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E67%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20wish%20there%20were%20more%20honest%20representations%20of%20parenting%20on%20social%20media%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3E53%25%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20of%20parents%20admit%20they%20put%20on%20a%20brave%20face%20rather%20than%20being%20honest%20due%20to%20fear%20of%20judgment%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cspan%20style%3D%22font-size%3A%2014px%3B%22%3ESource%3A%20YouGov%3C%2Fspan%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
India squads
Test squad against Afghanistan: Rahane (c), Dhawan, Vijay, Rahul, Pujara, Karun, Saha, Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Umesh, Shami, Pandya, Ishant, Thakur.
T20 squad against Ireland and England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Raina, Pandey, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh.
ODI squad against England: Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rohit, Rahul, Shreyas, Rayudu, Dhoni, Karthik, Chahal, Kuldeep, Sundar, Bhuvneshwar, Bumrah, Pandya, Kaul, Umesh
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
The specs
Engine: 4-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: eight-speed PDK
Power: 630bhp
Torque: 820Nm
Price: Dh683,200
On sale: now
