Dozens of residents and business owners protested outside Hillingdon Council's Civic Centre on Thursday night, demanding the authority reverse rent increases of more than 100 per cent imposed on local shops. The demonstration, which drew support from across the borough, culminated in protesters walking out of the council meeting shouting “shame on you” after councillors' responses fell short of their expectations.
Council changes position on backdated rent
In August, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) revealed that Hillingdon Council is increasing shop rents by more than 100 per cent, leading some tenants to fear closure. The increases had been backdated several years due to council delays, meaning rents were not raised when they should have been. However, during Thursday night's meeting, the council's position on this changed.
Cllr Nick Denys, Cabinet Member for Planning, Housing and Property, announced a shift in direction in response to five questions raised at the meeting. He said: “The council will also consider agreeing to start when the new market rent is paid from a reasonable date, which means there will not be an automatic approach of insisting that any new rents are backdated to when the contract says it can be. Officers will also consider arranging a stepped increase in what is paid - which could mean increasing new rents incrementally during the beginning years of a contract to give shop owners a reasonable time to gain an income to pay the new market rate amount.”
However, this change is conditional on shop owners agreeing to pay the market rate. Cllr Denys added that if a shop owner does not want to pay the new rent, they will have to vacate the site.
Protesters voice fears for local shops
One of the shops threatened with closure is Nessie and Normans, a cafe that opened just a year ago. Louise McGinty, who runs the cafe, told the LDRS that attendees wanted their voices heard. She said: “We want them to listen to us, we’ve come out tonight, the shops are important and they need to be saved - Hillingdon Council listen, please.”
Among the protesters outside was Lou Griffin, a former Labour councillor for Heathrow Villages, who lives near Mulberry Parade, one of the affected areas. He told the LDRS: “These shops are incredibly important for us and vital for many people, particularly those elderly people and those with disabilities who can’t travel very far very easily to get what they need.”
Griffin highlighted the local chemist as an example. “For example, the chemist in those shops - all my medication comes through that shop. It’s literally 200 yards up the road from where I live,” he said. “We can order medication from our doctor and it's delivered there - sometimes the same afternoon - and then we've only got to go up road to get it…if these shops have to close because those people working can’t afford those horrific rent increases then we will have to travel two to three miles up the road to get our medication.”
Residents criticise scale and backdating
Diane Faichney, a local resident, told the LDRS that the increase itself is not the main source of anger, but rather its scale and the initial backdating. She said: “I’m not saying that the rent shouldn’t go up because everybody’s rent has gone up. But actually, to ask for so much in one go is really unfair and it's unjust. It's very unjust to do that.”
Seconds after Cllr Denys sat down, disgruntled shop owners unhappy with his answer walked out of the meeting shouting “shame on you”, leading the Mayor to intervene.
Hillingdon Council maintains that it has a responsibility to Hillingdon taxpayers to manage its commercial properties properly and achieve best value. Previously, a spokesperson told the LDRS that rents have been below market value for a number of years and, where reviews or renewals are due, rents are being assessed against market evidence and in accordance with the leases agreed by tenants. The council's new offer of stepped increases and no automatic backdating will now be considered by officers, but shop owners must agree to the market rate to benefit.
