The British Retail Consortium will gather together finance directors from the country's biggest retailers on Monday to come up with a proposal for an 'overhaul' of the business rates system.
The summit will examine the issue of rising business rates, which raise the Government £26 billion a year and which is based on property rather than sales or profit.
The meeting is expected to include traditional retailers and their online-only counterparts, the Financial Times said today. Asos, for example, is a member of the BRC - and perhaps for that reason the meeting is not expected to discuss an specific online-only tax.
The British Retail Consortium, which has been heavily criticised by the online retail community for its latest attempts to shift the tax burden more heavily onto internet businesses, wants to present a credible solution to the Government for the business rates issue.
Online shopping giant Shop Direct said an online tax, called for by BRC-member Justin King, would 'unfairly penalise' ecommerce retailers.
The FT newspaper said retailers faced a £175 million increase in rates in April this year and a cumulative £500 million rise during the previous two years.
The summit of finance directors will also consider how to present the case for the 'business rate cliff' which they claim means the Government's business rate tax take will dwindle as retailers cut back on properties and shift their focus online, the FT said.
Top Shop and Bhs-owner Sir Philip Green backed calls for an overhaul to the rates system this week and called for a business rates holiday for small retailers. He says the rates system has fallen out of step since the financial crisis, the FT said.
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