Pharmacy Voice is calling on the Government to strengthen the Sustainable Communities Act (2007), as an official report warns that high streets have reached crisis point.
Television presenter Mary Portas was asked by the Government to look into the future of Britain’s high streets. In the report, released today, she warns that many high streets are “sickly and others are on the critical list.”
National Pharmacy Association (NPA) chief executive, Mike Holden, speaking for Pharmacy Voice said
“Pharmacies provide employment for local people and also act as anchors for economic activity, so helping to sustain a commercially viable high street. Furthermore, secure health infrastructure is important to maintain resilient communities, in towns, cities and rural locations. Pharmacies are not only an integral part of the NHS family but also an essential community facility and an important component in many neighbourhood economies.”
“We are pleased that Mary Portas’ report has put the health of high streets higher up the public policy agenda. We will examine the detail of her report with interest.
“The NPA was part of the coalition that ushered in the Sustainable Communities Act some years ago. The Act is meant to give local people and local businesses the opportunity to put forward ideas for community development, leading to meaningful action from councils and central government. We now want to see the Act strengthened, by putting a time limit on turning proposals agreed under the Act into reality on the ground”.
The Sustainable Communities Act (2007) aims to promote the sustainability of local communities. It begins from the principle that local people know best what needs to be done to promote the sustainability of their area, but that sometimes they need central government to act to enable them to do so.