Retail Ireland: Govt must address upward-only rents

Retail Ireland has said that new CSO retail sales figures for February continued to deteriorate, as core retail sales headed into their fourth year of decline.

Retail Ireland director Torlach Denihan said: "Retail sales continued to deteriorate into February. Consumers adjusted their spending as many received the first monthly pay cheque at the end of January affected by the Budget tax increases.

"The fact that the value of core retail sales (excluding cars and bars) is now into the fourth year of decline shows the need for urgent action by the new Government to help sustain the 240,000 jobs in the retail sector. Urgent reform is needed to reduce key business costs, such as rent, Joint Labour Committee pay scales, and commercial rates, and improve access to credit.

"Government must act to restore consumer confidence so that consumers will spend instead of saving excessively.

"Legislation to address unsustainable commercial rents is needed urgently.The new Attorney General should immediately review the issue of upward-only rent review clauses, with a view to clearing the way for new legislation to abolish them in existing leases.

"The Joint Labour Committee for setting wages in the retail grocery sector are destroying jobs and are unnecessary because of the national minimum wage. The ongoing review of these rules must lead to a major overhaul in the system."