Up Front Rate rise cause concern for traders
Mayor of London Sadiq Khan has warned that ‘the very nature of London’s high streets is under threat’ from increased business rate bills.
The Mayor is particularly concerned that many small, independent companies who have worked hard to build up their businesses could be forced to close as they will be unable to pay new business rates bills that are rising by up to 45 per cent. According to Government data, London’s businesses are facing a £900 million business rate rise as a result of the revaluation, to fund an equivalent tax cut for the rest of the country. The figure could eventually rise to £1.2bn. The Mayor said: “The very nature of London’s high streets is under threat. What we need is full devolution of business rates to London with genuine protections in place so we can safeguard businesses like this which are part of the fabric of what makes London such a vibrant, diverse and successful city.” While the Mayor has welcomed plans to alleviate the impact of the increases announced by the Chancellor in the recent Budget, he does not believe they go far enough. The Chancellor announced a £300 million discretionary relief hardship fund in the Budget. London’s share in 2017-18 of £72.5 million equates to less than 10 per cent of the additional bill facing London ratepayers from 1 April. In some boroughs, the fund will make almost no difference, he said.
A visionary who put Southwark on the map Irvine Sellar, Creator of the Shard dies aged 82. I do not think any other achievements of the famous dignitaries that we have had in Southwark has done more to put Southwark on the map and in the minds of people than the creation of Irvine Sellar’s Shard. Any news footage on London the camera zooms in over the Thames and centres on the Shard standing tall on the Southwark side of the Thames exposing our Borough to the whole of the UK and indeed the World. Just before the Shard was completed Irvine Sellars invited The Southwark Chamber of Commerce to send a delegation of members to tour the building. It must have been a terribly busy time for him but he generously gave us 2 hours of his time to modestly explain the intricacies of the building, how they got around the problems including protecting Guys Hospital from any land movement caused by the foundation digging. He was rather proud of the fact that they just took one weekend to cement in the Foundation – Hundreds of Cement Trucks were lined up from Tower Bridge on the North side down to and across London Bridge to dump their load then to refill and join the queue again at Tower Bridge with a new load.
It is a wonder it happened at all as he bought the land Southwark Towers occupied by PWC as an investment but then the UK Government decided they preferred high density structures to be built around transport hubs. His investment plot was ideal to fulfil this wish. He chose his Architect Renzo Piano who hated tall buildings but over lunch in Berlin, Irvine Sellar explained his concept of a vertical city and on a Menu and with Renzo’s pencil, drawings of the Shard took shape. Renzo signed the Menu and that was the agreement between the two of them. Initial funding was lost during the global property crash but the Qatari investors came in and later the State of Qatar acquired the stake and became partners with Irvine of the Shard and the adjoining London Bridge Quarter. Despite negative press reports the Shard and the London Bridge Quarter soon filled up with high profile tenants and is now on every overseas tourists itinerary for its viewing platform of London. Fashion retailer was Irvine’s first commercial venture - first selling Gloves from his father’s factory on a stall in Petticoat Lane to opening ‘Mates by Irvine Sellar’ in Carnaby Street with a first of selling Men’s
clothes next to Women’s in the same store. Pop stars of the 60’s bought from Mates to wear on their performance on Top of the Pops that night!. Mates by Irvine Sellar became a chain across the UK and eventually sold by Irvine in 1980 and he moved into Property. ’Ford Sellar Morris’ became a Stock Exchange quoted Company with pre-tax profit of £25 million. It collapsed in the economic downturn of 91/93. He came back in 1998 with the purchase of the site that became that of the Shard. His Son James takes control of the Sellar Group. Southwark has a lot to thank Irvine Sellar and his Shard – it stands as his monument and a Beacon for Southwark.
Barry Martin
Reception to mark the 100th Anniversary of the British School of Osteopathy A reception to mark the centenary of the founding of the British School of Osteopathy was held at St James Palace, hosted by their patron, Her Royal Highness the Princess Royal, the Princess Anne, on 2nd March last. The reception was attended by staff, vice patrons, past students and guests from around the world, including representatives from a number of osteopathic schools and organisations. The event was kindly sponsored by The Alan & Sheila Diamond Trust. The school was founded in March 1917 in Westminster and moved to their present location on Borough High Street in 1998. Ten years later they opened a state of the art teaching clinic on nearby Southwark Bridge Road, where they deliver over 35,000
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osteopathic appointments a year at a subsidised rate. They also run a number of free, specialist community clinics for children, older people, homeless people and people living with HIV and AIDS, and are committed to ensuring that osteopathic care is accessible to all. They have recently been granted the power to award their own degrees, having been validated by the University of Bedford previously, and will be graduating their first cohort later this year. Charles Hunt, Principal of the BSO, said of the centenary: “We are very proud of the role the BSO has
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played in the development and recognition of osteopathy over the past 100 years. The school has recently become the only osteopathic institution in Europe granted the ability to award its own degrees, and has also been designated for funding by government, recognising us as a quality provider. This new status will take us, with confidence, into the next 100 years and I thank everyone who has played a part in our journey.” In her address her Royal Highness, who has been Patron of the BSO for 34 years, remarked on the
broad spectrum of graduates she has met over the years from around the world. She commented in particular on the varied backgrounds of students, many of whom are embarking on a second career having previously occupied professions such as bus drivers and tattoo artists.
The British School of Osteopathy have been Chamber members since 1998 and we wish them continued success going forward into their next century.
Ken Hayes