CITY of York Council has suspended rents on all of its 350 commercial properties - in a move praised by business leaders.

The council owns key buildings in the city centre, including property in Shambles, Gillygate and Swinegate. It has announced tenants' rents will be deferred for the next three months.

And £1 million will be put towards helping businesses that miss out on government support.

Phil Pinder, chair of York Retail Forum, who asked the council to consider suspending rent on its commercial properties, said the council is setting a good example: “This is welcome relief for businesses.

“I really welcome the £1 million for small businesses that may be missed by the government plans too, it’s really good to see that they are considering all things - this could help micro businesses, market traders and people working from home. They don’t need a huge amount but a little bit of help from the council will go a long way.

“It’s good to get any additional support. And this move has pushed private landlords to make similar offers.”

He added that businesses will be expected to pay back one-and-a-half times their rent between July and November - but that it’s a more-profitable time and the business rates holiday also helps cut bills.

Labour councillor Claire Douglas also welcomed the plans - saying she also argued for rents to be cut and that the challenge facing businesses cannot be underestimated.

She said: “Never has there been a more important time for the council, central government, commercial landlords, banks and our city’s large anchor institutions to pull together to support the city’s smaller firms and to keep our residents in jobs through this incredibly tough period.”

The council said it will also support its suppliers by paying in advance where possible and looking at short-term loans.

It also announced a licence fee holiday for businesses that cannot currently use them - such as for venues selling alcohol. And debt recovery efforts - the use of bailiffs - is suspended.

Cllr Andrew Waller, executive member for the economy, said: “We want to get help to businesses as quickly as possible to assist them at this critical time. We would encourage other property landlords to take the same approach. We’re making the case to central government, and hope in particular that more measures will be announced soon to support the city’s 12,000 self-employed people. We’re pulling out all the stops to deliver the existing government support as quickly as possible, including changing over 4,000 business rates accounts and developing a totally new process to distribute up to £30 million in grants at the start of April.”

“We’re also working with the York BID, LEPS and other partners to connect businesses to all the available advice, guidance and support, so we’d urge any business to visit www.york.gov.uk/BusinessSupport to see what is available to them.”