LONON (Reuters) -- Britain’s retail sector will endure a “tsunami of closures” if the government does not extend a moratorium on aggressive debt enforcement, industry lobby group the British Retail Consortium (BRC), said on Sunday.
Citing survey data it said two thirds of British retailers have been told by landlords they will be subject to legal measures to recover unpaid rent from July 1 when the moratorium ends. Many UK retailers deemed “non essential” had to close their stores during multiple COVID-19 lockdowns over the last 15 months, accruing total rent debt of 2.9 billion pounds ($4.1 billion), the BRC said.