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Both the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and the Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) said they were pleased the white paper on levelling-up had been published, although both said the plans needed to be followed up with action.
James Lowman, ACS chief executive, said: “It’s encouraging that the white paper recognises the importance of tackling crime, which is central to how people feel about their local area.
“This rhetoric needs to be backed with resources and powers for police and crime commissioners and neighbourhood policing teams to improve their response to crime in shops and elsewhere in communities.
“People across the country want to live, work and shop in safe places, and without that levelling up can’t happen.”
Among the measures called for by the ACS is faster broadband, particularly in the countryside, where it says rural shops “are being held back by poor connectivity”.
Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, said: “We welcome the levelling-up white paper and believe more can be done to improve our town and city centres.
“Retailers want to see initiatives that will make high streets more attractive places to invest in and more compelling places for people to visit.”
Dickinson added that the BRC wanted to discuss with ministers the detail of how retailers “can help deliver” on the government’s levelling-up agenda.
The stated aims of the white paper are to improve standards of living and working in disadvantaged areas through 12 “missions” to be completed by 2030.
