Lots of discussion today about business rates reform. Building on some great exchanges on here over the years, some thoughts follow. Firstly, the exam question is how to raise the same amount rates currently generates (c£30bn) - just saying tax should be lower is cheating! 1/9 https://twitter.com/RetailWeek/status/1358687622709841920

Option A is the status quo - business rates. Advantage is that the system exists, property is easy to tax (and hard to hide!). Disadvantage is that as a proxy for 'economic activity' it has been made very outdated by the growth in online. 2/9

Option B is the 'online sales tax'. Advantage is that it is fairly simple (assuming a clear definition of who the 'online retailers' are). Disadvantages are that it doesn't get close to replacing business rates and feels a bit like retailers advocating taxing 'someone else' 3/9

(Oh, and the crippling disadvantage of Option B, of course, is that in an omnichannel world 'online sales' makes no sense. So it isn't really a tax on 'online sales', just a cash grab from Amazon, ASOS etc) 4/9

Option C is to replace business rates altogether with either a sales tax or (more likely) an increase in VAT. Advantage is that it is channel agnostic and fairly easy to administer. Disadvantage is the argument that increasing consumer prices reduces spend and is regressive. 5/9

Option D would be to increase Corporation tax on retailers to replace business rates. Advantage is that as a tax on profit it is easier for firms to bear. Disadvantages are all the definitional and international issues that beset taxing profits on global giants. 6/9

Option E would be changing the business rates system in some way to make it fairer. I've seen policy papers advocating shifting from business rates to land taxes, for example, though the pros and cons of that require more brainpower than I have on a Monday morning. 7/9

How should we evaluate our options? Simplicity. Ease of collection. Resistance to accountants 'mucking about' to reduce the burden on large Seattle based retailers. Reduction of 'skews' between parts of the sector. Limiting knock-on impacts on the economy. Take your pick. 8/9

Me? If I had to pick (and it is useful to force yourself to pick one or a combination from this list), I'm probably erring towards Option C as the fairest and most likely to leave us with working High Streets. But it is a tough call. What do you think? Have I missed one? 9/9 Fin