Today at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, High Streets UK (HSUK) launched a four-point plan to create a new sense of optimism for the nation’s flagship high streets. Knightsbridge Partnership is proud to be a member of HSUK and fully supports the plan.
The four asks of Government
- Business rates reform. The Treasury must comprehensively reform the business rates system so that it is progressive, rewards investment, and supports the anchor stores that drive footfall to flagship high streets.
- Visible policing. Police forces, guided by the Home Office, should work with high street businesses and their BIDs to strengthen visible policing and tackle the organised crime and anti-social behaviour that undermine confidence in city centres.
- Fair Overnight Visitor Levies. Any levy must be proportionate, simple for operators, introduced only with meaningful involvement from the local tourism sector, and have its receipts ring-fenced for local benefit.
- Tax-free shopping. HSUK members support the return of tax-free shopping, or an alternative that serves the same goal of making the UK’s flagship high streets more internationally competitive.
Why it matters for Knightsbridge
Knightsbridge is home to some of the world’s most recognised retailers, hotels and restaurants, and a major share of our visitors come from overseas. That makes the district especially exposed to national policy on tourism and trade.
Since tax-free shopping ended, international visitors have had fewer reasons to choose London over Paris, Milan or Madrid. Non-EU visitor spend in Britain is stuck at 75% of pre-pandemic levels, compared with 166% in Spain, 159% in France and 137% in Italy, costing the UK an estimated £2billion in lost sales and 40,000 retail jobs*. Restoring tax-free shopping, or a modern equivalent, would help Knightsbridge win back that spend for London and the UK.
Safety is equally important. Through our work to protect Knightsbridge, we partner closely with the Metropolitan Police, MOPAC and Safer Business Network and local businesses on a collaborative approach to safety and security across the district. That work shows what is possible when police, businesses and BIDs work together, and HSUK’s call for strengthened visible policing would build on it nationally.
Business rates remain one of the biggest costs for our members, from flagship department stores to independent businesses. A system that rewards investment rather than penalising it would help Knightsbridge keep attracting the anchor stores that bring people to the district and strengthen the local economy for all businesses.
Steven Medway, Chief Executive of Knightsbridge Partnership, said:
“Knightsbridge is one of the UK’s great international shop windows, and our businesses invest heavily to keep it that way. But national policy has made that harder, from a business rates system that penalises investment to the loss of tax-free shopping that sends international visitors elsewhere in Europe. High Streets UK’s four-point plan sets out practical steps Government can take now to unlock growth, and we look forward to working with Government and our fellow HSUK members to deliver it.”
Read High Streets UK’s full four-point plan.
About High Streets UK
High Streets UK (HSUK) is a pro-growth, nationwide partnership of business representatives which aims to tackle the most pressing issues facing the UK’s flagship high streets and unlock local and national growth.
HSUK represents more than 5,000 businesses across flagship high streets in England, Scotland and Wales, including leading Business Improvement Districts in Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Leeds, Liverpool, London and Newcastle. Together, these destinations drive growth, employment and investment, and they shape how the world sees Britain.
- * Source: Global Blue, September 2025
