Liz Peace comes out with some gems too. She has exactly the verbal dexterity needed to sound authoritative while saying absolutely nothing of value. Sbe ought to be spokesperson for Enterprise Inns, or maybe BBPA could find a position for her:

"Business secretary Lord Mandelson said the government’s empty property tax was ‘good for business’ but if charging a hardship tax on firms’ vacancies is the government’s idea of helping business then I’d hate to see him helping an old lady across the road,"...

"Unsustainable level of competition?" What on earth does this utter gobbledigook mean? NOTHING.

Rates relief for empty properties huh? WHY? What dispensation arguiment ios there for subsidising property companies when they are incapable of letting properties? Whyt should they get immunity from the ravages of the recession? Why should they not take the lean times following 'fat' times?

It's far more constructive for rates relief to be given to the people who are running businesses that are actually trading rather than subsidising the people who own closed premises. Rates relief is a public subsidy to the private sector and should not be bandied around willy nilly to property companies proving themselves incapable of letting empty badly maintained buildings off at unsustainable rents.