Retail bosses are to meet Chancellor Healey at No 11 as 'warehouse tax' raid is ruled out before Budget

From the Newshound archive · first published 11 October 2026.

Chancellor John Healey appears to have ruled out a 'warehouse tax' on large retail warehouses, but he will still face pressure from retail and hospitality leaders when he meets them at Downing Street on Tuesday. M&S chief executive Stuart Machin, who warned that Labour's last two Budgets cost his firm £150 million a year in new costs, has written directly to Healey calling on him to reverse the damage before the October 28 Budget. John Lewis and Waitrose chairman Jason Tarry says the proposals showed 'a fundamental misunderstanding of how modern high streets work' and warned closures could follow.

Machin argues that retail bears more than 20% of all business rates despite accounting for only 5% of economic output.

Tarry warned that taxing anchor retailers like John Lewis risks destroying the smaller independent shops, cafes and bakeries that rely on their footfall.

The IPPR think tank has separately proposed a 2% levy on online sales — including Amazon — to fund relief for bricks-and-mortar businesses.