What else should be on the manifesto?

Our Manifesto for the High Street is 10-point plan setting out what the Government, local authorities and retailers need to do, working together to breathe new life into the UK’s shopping streets.

But we also want to hear from you - What else should be in the manifesto?

1. Provide free town centre parking for shoppers

For too long councils have capitalised on easy revenue from parking charges, even though it’s not a cost you incur shopping out of town or online. Councils need to recognise the role of safe and free - or at the very least affordable - parking to encourage people back into shops. If there are charges, income should be ring-fenced to benefit shoppers and retailers.

2. Put a freeze on additional taxes on shops

Everyone knows times are tough and any generosity from the Treasury is unlikely. But retailers should not expect additional taxes. Now is not the time for Business Rates Supplements or Community Infrastructure Levies.

3. Take retail crime seriously

Low-level crime not only makes the life of retail staff - particularly those in convenience stores - a misery, but drives away shoppers. Through local partnerships between police, retailers and local authorities, and backed up by the courts, a zero-tolerance approach to crime and disorder is vital.

4. Manage infrastructure works better

Roadworks have caused mayhem in town and city centres, as notoriously evidenced by the Edinburgh tram works that paralysed Princes Street for much of last year. Roads and sewers need to be repaired, but work must be done in consultation with retailers and can’t be allowed to affect prime shopping areas for extended periods, because they won’t bounce back.

5. Compel landlords to contribute to BIDs

Business Improvement Districts have overall been positive, but it’s unfair that retailers are compelled to fund them but those who own the shops aren’t. If landlords get a share of the benefits, they should share in the costs.

6. Reinvent the high street as a multichannel destination

Etail continues to power ahead, but retains a fundamental handicap - that goods tend to be delivered when customers are at work. Click-and-collect is growing fast but there must be a market for a new genre of high street operations allowing parcels to be collected in the evening and at weekends.

7. Create an identity

Town centres should be the centre of a town’s social and creative life - after all, you can’t create much of a buzz on a retail park. So creating an identity and using events to reinforce it is a vital point of difference, and councils and town centre managers need to take the lead.

8. Work in partnership with indies

The greatest thing about the best high streets is their independents, so why shouldn’t there be collaboration within a town to help each other along. If a distinctive offer attracts shoppers back, everyone