Chesterfield entrepreneur postpones plans for £20m investment in Derbyshire businesses – slamming Labour budget for stifling growth
A Chesterfield-based entrepreneur has confirmed that plans to expand his Derbyshire business portfolio with £20m of investment would be called off – after the Labour Government’s budget was announced.
Steve Perez is the founder and chairman of Global Brands and Casa Hotels Group. Established in 1997, Global Brands has grown into one of the leading firms in the drinks industry, creating and distributing a wide range of household names – including VK and Hooch. Casa Hotel Group includes Casa Hotel at Lockoford Lane in Chesterfield, and the Peak Edge Hotel at Stone Edge.
Back in 2022, Perez was granted planning permission to double the size of the Peak Edge Hotel by North East Derbyshire District Council, adding a spa and 29 more bedrooms.
He said at the time that the development would create 49 full-time equivalent jobs, explaining that in order to achieve five-star status, the hotel would need 24-hour room service and concierge - as well as beauty specialists for the spa.
Mr Perez was also about to apply for permission to install a new canning line at his drinks factory in Clay Cross - which he said would have created 50 jobs in the area.
He has, however, been forced to postpone both investments - worth around £20m to the local economy - amid fears over the budget announced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the end of October.
Reeves confirmed a major change to business property relief. Previously, business properties could be handed down to family members without being subject to inheritance tax. From April 2026, such properties that are valued at more than £1m will face a 20% inheritance tax charge.
Mr Perez said it was unfair for businesses to be hit with another tax burden, and that these projects would not take place without a change of Government or a drastic economic upturn.
He said: “The point that people probably don’t quite get is that I, like everyone else, will have to pay inheritance tax on my personal wealth - and I fully accept that. Businesses are a separate entity, and to put the burden of an inheritance tax on a business, is unfair.
“Just because the boss has changed, why should there be an inheritance tax charged on that business? This means that businesses won’t be able to grow, won’t be able to invest in their future, and it will put employees’ jobs at risk. That’s why it was a Labour Government who introduced the relief.
“We’ve still got the planning permission, but we’re going to have to put it on hold until there is either a change of Government or a much better economic outlook.”
Mr Perez said that he would have to consider any subsequent investments even more carefully. He added that, with Labour’s changes, his business might need to be sold off if something were to happen to him - with his 400 employees potentially ending up working for a distant corporate rather than a local businessman.
He said: “I’ve built my business up in Chesterfield and the East Midlands. Everything is based here, and I’ve got 400 employees.
“It just creates some uncertainty for their jobs going forward. I have to consider my investment very carefully now, not just for my benefit, but for my employees. I’m 67 years old - if I invest and something happens to me, the business is going to be saddled with a huge inheritance tax bill, which isn’t going to be affordable.
“A business, or parts of a business, would have to be sold. People might not be working for a local business and end up working for a big corporate. One of the things I think people appreciate, working for a company like mine, is that anyone can walk into my office - you can’t do that if you’re working for a big organisation.
“I’ve been very successful with my business, but the Government doesn’t seem to understand that this isn’t about me wanting to pay less tax, it’s about me wanting to keep my business and legacy intact.
“We could potentially be hit with a huge tax bill if anything happened to me. Therefore, I’ve got to cut back on the investment and try to build up a nest egg, so that if we are hit with a big tax bill, the business can afford to pay it and continue - which is my overriding desire.”
Perez added that the other aspects of the budget were set to cost his business hundreds of thousands of pounds - raising concerns of the impact these measures would have on independent family businesses across the country.
He said: “We’ve also been hit by the increase in National Insurance contributions - that will cost my business around £350,000. The minimum wage rise will cost us around £250,000, and there’s another £100,000 in business rates. It’s going to be very, very tough for business. When you’ve got treasury ministers saying that businesses will just have to suck it up - it’s businesses that produce things, that pay tax, that employ people - you can’t just keep squeezing businesses in the long term.
“I’ve invested heavily in Chesterfield and Derbyshire - I don’t have any investments anywhere else. I’m a great believer in the area, we’ve got some amazing people who work for us. Some people have worked for me for over 30 years - I’ve got fathers, daughters and grandchildren working for me. I’m really proud of that, and I just want it to continue beyond me.
“Ultimately, it is better for the country if businesses don’t just look short term, but look long term. Germany is full of successful, third and fourth generation family businesses, because they are allowed to thrive in that way.
“The Labour Government who brought the relief in didn’t do it just to give people a tax break, they brought it in to stimulate growth and to encourage people to invest in the long term. That has always been my strategy - until last week. This is going to be the beginning of the end of independent family businesses.”
Mr Perez also owns Walton Lodge Farm, which supplies food and produce to his restaurants and hotels.
He added: “I’m also a farmer. That’s not my main business and it won’t affect me personally too badly, but I feel so sorry for the farmers. Most of them don’t have another business that can build up a buffer to pay that tax.
“I understand farming, and I understand the fact that you need scale to be profitable. If they’re having to sell part of their farms off to pay a tax, then they’re going to be less efficient, which will put up prices, and they’re going to be less profitable. It’s just so badly thought out - it’s a sledgehammer to crack a nut.
“The Government, apparently, were going for these wealthy landowners who own large swathes of land around the country, and buy up land without farming it themselves - they keep it as an inheritance tax loophole.
“I understand that, but that is agricultural property relief. Business property relief is a completely different matter. Most farmers are businesspeople and they shouldn’t just change this relief. The trouble is with the Government, they always just think short term - they’re thinking ‘when’s the next election’ - they should be thinking long term as businesses do.”
Mr Perez has organised a meeting, taking place at 5.30pm on November 14 at Chesterfield’s Casa Hotel. This will provide an open forum for local business owners and farmers to voice their concerns and engage in discussion with local MPs.
Toby Perkins, MP for Chesterfield, and Louise Jones, MP for North East Derbyshire, will be in attendance - alongside Barry Lewis, Head of Derbyshire County Council and Portfolio Holder for Farming and Rural Affairs.
The meeting has already gained a high level of interest from local businesses and farmers. To confirm your attendance, RSVP by emailing Zehra Gezer at [email protected].