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The initial ban on evictions was introduced at the start of the pandemic to protect struggling firms from being evicted from premises and was due to expire at the end of September.
The government also confirmed that it will extend the ban on landlords using bailiffs to enforce unpaid rent on leases until the end of the year.
The Association of Convenience Stores has welcomed the news. Chief executive, James Lowman, said: “Local shops operate in a range of locations across the UK and many retailers, particularly those trading in city centres and transports hubs, have seen a significant decline in trade since the start of the outbreak.
“We welcome the government decision to extend this support which will provide local shops with additional help which will allow them to focus on recovering their business to ensure that they can continue to feed their communities now and into the future.”
In addition, Tom Ironside, director of business and regulation at the British Retail Consortium, said: “We’re pleased that the government has listened to us and others on the issue of rents. It remains a difficult time for store-based retailers, who face high costs from coronavirus safety measures, and significantly lower footfall.
“While the extension of the moratorium will provide a respite for many struggling retailers, a large Christmas Day rent bill would be a disaster during the all-important peak trading period, some protections have not been included in this announcement, such as the ban on Statutory Demands and Winding up petitions. Without these, and County Court judgements, the protections that have been extended will be undermined. Nonetheless, we hope those landlords who haven’t agreed settlements with their tenants will use this extra time and negotiate a reasonable deal that shares the impact of Coronavirus fairly.”
