Hospitality and retail businesses paid £62 billion in taxes to the Treasury and HMRC in the financial year to April, according to research commissioned by the British Retail Consortium (BRC). The combined burden of business rates, VAT, employer National Insurance contributions, corporation tax and other levies equated to 82p per £1 of hospitality profit and 72p in retail, compared with an average of 50p across 11 sectors and 40.5p for banking. The BRC said the burden was contributing to the decline of Britain's town centres, where one in seven high-street premises is empty. Retail employment has fallen by 122,000 in two years and hospitality jobs by 93,000, while pub closures are running at more than one a day. The findings come as high-street businesses face higher business rates, energy costs, employer NICs and the minimum wage, without the same capital and research-and-development tax allowances available to manufacturing and construction. Andy Burnham has announced a 20% cut in business rates for pubs, clubs and live music venues from April 2027, worth about £1,100 a year for an average pub, following 15% relief announced in January. Other hospitality businesses are seeking equivalent support.