Liz Kendall MP meets with the Fed in Leicester

Members of the Federation of Independent Retailers (the Fed) met with local MP Liz Kendall in Leicester on Friday, May 1, where they celebrated the Crime and Policing Bill getting Royal Assent and discussed retail crime and other issues affecting small independent retailers both locally and across the rest of the UK.

The visit was hosted by the Fed’s East of England district president Jital Patel at his business SK News, on Anstey Lane, in Ms Kendall’s Leicester West constituency. Also in attendance were fellow constituent and city-centre retailer Parth Patel; Leicestershire Fed member Hetal Patel; and the Fed’s political engagement coordinator Douglas Oliver.

The Act, which received Royal Assent on Wednesday, April 29 after being voted through Parliament, includes key measures such as the introduction of a standalone offence of assaulting a shopworker and the removal of the £200 threshold of theft as only a “low-value” summary offence.

Discussions also touched on the services provided by small independent retailers across Leicester as well as the business discounts, knowledge sharing and political representation opportunities the Fed provides for its 8,000 members across the UK.

The Fed team also asked questions about business rates and energy costs, including the Fed’s work with Ms Kendall’s Labour colleague, Sarah Edwards MP, to make pricing of electricity bills more competitive and fairer for small businesses.

Jital Patel said: “It was great to welcome Ms Kendall to our business and discuss the positive work the Fed does to represent our members. We spoke about challenges caused by retail crime and our work with the police and Trading Standards to report crime and rogue trade.”

Ms Kendall said: “I’m delighted to have spent time with Jital, Parth and Hetal at SK News, hearing about the vast range of services they provide, and finding out more about their experiences as independent retailers. It was also great to hear more from the Fed about the work they do to represent independent retailers across the UK, and I will be passing on their feedback to my colleagues in government.

“My thanks to Jital, Parth and Hetal for inviting me, and I’ll be sure to visit again.”

Pictured left to right: Hetal Patel, Jital Patel, Liz Kendall, Doug Oliver and Parth Patel.