Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Aldi and Asda have followed Tesco’s lead in announcing they will pay back the business relief they received from the government as support during the pandemic.
The news from Tesco came yesterday (2 December) when the supermarket said it would repay the £585m it received through the scheme (see Direct Commerce news story).
Morrisons responded on Wednesday evening, pledging to give back the £274 it had received. Sainsbury’s then followed suit this morning, agreeing to return £440m.
Aldi and Asda have also since decided to return the funds they received. Aldi said it would return over £100m, while Asda announced it would pay business rates of £340m to the UK government.
Business rates relief was extended to all retailers as part of a package of measures announced by the government in March.
The decision by the Big Four supermarkets and discount retailer, Aldi, takes the total to over £1.7bn, according to The Guardian.
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