TAKING on the Nimbys and unpeeling the procurement onion are on the agenda for Liz Truss after visiting business leaders in York.

The chief secretary to the Treasury was speaking at a round-table event yesterday organised by York Conservatives in a bid to help Government understand issues facing businesses in the city.

Hot on the heels of the Spring Statement, announced on Tuesday, Ms Truss visited the offices of York law firm Lupton Fawcett to speak to an invited audience of around 30 business men and women.

The MP for South West Norfolk said: “We are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. We had a massive task to get over the recession but we are now ready and rearing to go.”

Ms Truss said encouraging growth was key to success, with an overhaul of the planning system being one of the key drivers needed to get business moving.

She said: “One of the problems we have got in Britain is we have got a blob of vested interest that doesn’t want things to happen. We have got a lot of bureaucrats in the system that stop things happening because they won’t benefit from it. We need to look at how we can reform government to deal better with them.

“The under 30’s want a shake up, they want to feel that things are changing and happening. We need to shake up the planning system, and that would involve taking on a lot of our own vested interest.

“Lack of housing is a ridiculous burden both in London and York. Major planning reform would straight away release major opportunities and that would see growth.

“We have got to take on the Nimbys and say we are going to build more homes.”

One of the first issues raised by York businesses during the Q&A was that of business rates. Phil Pindar, chairman of the York Retail Forum said: “The biggest problem for retailers is business rates. Some retailers can face paying ten per cent of their turnover in rates, where as internet based retailers pay a fraction of that at less than one per cent. Business rates were introduced in medieval times. It doesn’t take into account internet based businesses which aren’t taxed in any way.”

Ms Truss wouldn’t indicate when the long ago promised reform of the business rates system would materialise but said Brexit posed an opportunity “to do tax differently”.

She said: “It is a totemic issue. We have got a big opportunity to do tax differently.

“How do you tax digital businesses is a big part of what we are looking at and a big proportion of what we will be putting forward. A simpler system would be much better.

“We are currently consulting on business rates. Brexit gives us the opportunity to re-launch the tax system.”

Another issue raised by the city’s business leaders was that of procurement, with criticism of major contracts awarded to large scale corporate giants such a Corillian. Mark Fordyce, managing director of York Data Services, said it was “soul destroying” that middle level businesses aren’t brought in to discussions with Government on local and national level for contracts, adding that York itself has a lot of talent to offer in providing solutions.

Ms Truss said: “We are hamstrung by some extent because of the EU process, which we can improve when we leave. We have to change the culture. I really want to sort this out, I think it is a big issue. It’s a big ship to turn around, its takes time to change that culture.”

Ms Truss also urged business leaders in the room to get behind a Yorkshire bid for a devolution deal, saying the county was “the missing piece” in the Government’s strategy.