Business rates growing faster than council tax and fuel duty The OBR figures show that between 2008 and 2018, business rates will grow by 41pc, or £9.4bn, to generate £32.3bn for the Treasury. This compares to a 21pc, or £5.2bn, uptick in fuel duty and a 26.6pc, or £6.4bn, increase in council tax. Retailers are leading the calls for George Osborne, the Chancellor, to extend a period of relief measures he put in place in last year's Autumn Statement. This package, worth more than £1bn, included capping the annual inflation-linked increase in business rates at 2pc and offering a £1,000 discount for small businesses. In addition, companies are pushing for the main political parties to commit to reforming the tax in their manifestos for next year's General Election. A collection of the biggest manufacturers in the country have added to the pressure by warning the Chancellor that business rates are "seriously undermining" the attractiveness of the UK for investment. In a letter to Mr Osborne, 14 manufacturers, including Tata, the owner of Jaguar Land Rover, General Motors, the owner of Vauxhall, and Siemens said the tax is "simply not fit for purpose." The companies said manufactures are being "punished" for investing. They suggested that the Government removes plant and machinery when valuing commercial property to decide the level of tax it will pay. They wrote in the letter: "Business rates is one of the very few taxes which are non-cyclical and fixed at a level irrespective of economic or market conditions. Fixed costs are given much greater prominence over taxes when making investment decisions and therefore huge comparative distortions [with the rest of Europe] are seriously undermining the UK's case as a destination for investment.