John Lewis boss calls for royal commission to save high streets

Sharon White

Source: John Lewis Partnership

Sharon White says planning, taxation, crime, environmental policy, housing and transport issues must be “considered as a whole”

John Lewis Partnership chair Sharon White has called for a royal commission to be set up to help secure the future of the nation’s ailing high streets.

She said the issues underlying increasing vacancy rates in the retail sector were “complex and connected” but were “too often looked at in isolation”.

“Planning, taxation, crime, environmental policy, housing and transport all play their role, but must be considered as a whole,” she said in a letter to the Daily Telegraph.

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