Over the last 20 years we have seen the health of our high streets and town centres change beyond recognition. And not for the better.

So can whoever wins the keys to Downing Street do anything to revive them? The answer is probably not.

The reality is our changing shopping habits have fuelled the decline of our high streets in their traditional form - and not political decisions.

We’ve switched - and it was accelerated by the pandemic - to online shopping and our town centres are undergoing a process now in which they morph from chain-heavy fashion-led retail outlets to more leisurely pursuits.

In Ashford, for example, its town centre shopping complex County Square saw a lavish extension opened to great fanfare in 2007 - but was then hit by the decimation of so many big-name stores falling out of business or retreating. Today, there are plans to convert much of it into residential units.

And it is far from alone - every high street, including the likes of Canterbury’s tourist-buoyed offering - has been hit hard by the changes.

In other words, we’re increasingly heading to town centres for an experience - think food and drink, think beauty treatments - rather than to buy a new wardrobe.

So don’t expect any party to be able to reverse the decline. The era of big fashion chains and department stores is, sadly, over.

However, there are steps which can be taken to improve the lot of traditional bricks and mortar retailers and the hospitality providers now setting up shop in their place.

And one of the key ones is business rates.

This is a tax levied on business properties and, since 2013, a chunk is retained by the local authority - a move designed to off-set the central government funding cuts ushered in by the coalition government of 2010 as part of its austerity drive.

Unsurprisingly, that slice of the tax has become important to local councils as a key revenue generator.

Tudor Price, chief executive of the Kent Chamber of Commerce, which represents businesses across the country, explains: “Ironically, a lot of people that are on the high street quite often qualify for business rate relief as a small business. So in terms of the impact the business rates have on small independents, it isn't huge.

“What it's done, of course, is it's driven out all of the large multinationals and the chains. That is problematic because they bring with them brand recognition.

“That's why we say that the business rate system needs to be overhauled completely because it is absolutely of no relevance whatsoever to town centres anymore.

“It doesn't reflect the way business is conducted these days. And so you are going to have growing inequality and growing disincentives for some large businesses to invest in large conurbations, town centres or otherwise. It's really got to be addressed.

“The trouble is, it is a very big problem. And of course, right now local authorities are facing a hell of a squeeze on their budgets.”

It’s often easy to point the finger of blame at our local authorities - but since 2010 they have seen their central government funding slashed. Hence the reason council tax and parking charges get hiked.

“So what they're doing,” continues the chamber chief, “is they're playing with parking fees. Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council is a classic example where they've started to introduce evening parking charges.

“Whilst they say that's to try and help manage traffic, what it's doing is it's targeting the nighttime economy. Now, that's not the way to support business.”

But what are the national parties pledging to do?

The Lib Dems are promising to “boost small businesses and empower them to create new local jobs, including by abolishing business rates and replacing them with a commercial landowner levy to help our high streets”.

On a recent visit to Tunbridge Wells - a seat the party has in its sights - leader Ed Davey said: “High streets are the life and soul of our communities, but for too long they have been ignored and let down by this Conservative government. We must restore our town centres by taking bold action.”

Effectively, it would stop tenants paying business rates, and instead require the owner of the building, who has often benefited from rising land values, to pay the new levy.

The Conservatives, meanwhile, say they will “continue to ease the burden of business rates for high street, leisure and hospitality businesses by increasing the multiplier on distribution warehouses that support online shopping over time”.

In other words - and without boring you with how the rates are calculated by a multiplier system - they’ll up business rates for those online operators who avoid much of the pain experienced by bricks and mortar stores.

Labour, meanwhile, says the current business rates system “disincentivises investment, creates uncertainty and places an undue burden on our high streets”. So it plans to “replace the business rates system, so we can raise the same revenue but in a fairer way. This new system will level the playing field between the high street and online giants, better incentivise investment, tackle empty properties and support entrepreneurship.”

With both the Tories and Labour citing similar approaches, neither have yet provided the intricate detail as to how they will achieve such a goal.

Reform UK say it will “abolish business rates for high street-based SMEs” and offset this with an “online delivery tax at 4% for large, multinational enterprises to create a fairer playing field for high streets”.

The only reference in the Green Party’s manifesto is that it would give “local authorities discretionary powers to exempt socially and economically essential local enterprises from business rates”.

As a word of warning, however, the business rates issue has been a thorn in the side of town centre businesses for years now. Reforming it will be significant.

Talking of reforming, what of Brexit - hailed as the answer to the county’s woes by those voting Leave and a potential end of days by those wishing to Remain?

It is one topic all parties tend to agree on - in that their approach tends to be “let’s not talk about it”. Which is a reminder of just how divisive it was and remains.

The Labour and Green Party manifestos make reference to the word Brexit just once each in their manifestos - the Lib Dems a mere twice. The Tories reference it 12 times, while Reform UK, perhaps not unsurprisingly, devotes a whole section to it.

Nigel Farage’s party says that Brexit “is the opportunity of a lifetime” before, just a few lines later adding “our country is worse off, both financially and culturally” after successive Tory and Labour administrations.

Which, of course, some may say has not been helped by our separation from the EU.

Certainly Kent has felt the brunt of new border checks which have meant long delays at the ports - a situation which will only be exacerbated when biometric checks are introduced later this year. That has a knock-on effect to all key roads in the east of the county and clogs up key arteries for deliveries to and from the continent as well as locally.

But the impact on trade is also considerable too. The additional red tape and costs involved has meant many smaller exporters in the county have decided selling into the EU is no longer financially viable.

Explains Tudor Price of the Kent Invicta Chamber: “We left without a deal. The trade cooperation agreement was the worst possible deal we could negotiate and as such we've been suffering from the impact of that for a very long time.

“It is something we need to try and renegotiate because the terms we're currently under have really stymied the free flow of goods back and forth.

“In Kent, we had a very large number of small businesses that were producing low volumes but high quality. Whether that was wine, beer or food.

“What used to happen is that as a truck would come back down the line, they'd pop a pallet on and take it over to Europe without any paperwork and it'll be fairly easy to distribute. That evaporated overnight when we moved into the new realms of the customs regime.”

As for the main parties? The Tories insist they will “seize the benefits of Brexit by signing further trade deals…cutting red tape for business, and creating new fishing opportunities”.

Labour is keen to underline that “Britain will stay outside of the EU”, adding: “But to seize the opportunities ahead, we must make Brexit work. We will reset the relationship and seek to deepen ties with our European friends, neighbours and allies. That does not mean reopening the divisions of the past. There will be no return to the single market, the customs union, or freedom of movement”.

The Lib Dems are more forthright, saying that the Tories’ “botched Brexit deal has badly damaged the economy, leaving everyone worse off”. They add: “Liberal Democrats will immediately fix our broken relationship with Europe, forge a new partnership built on cooperation, not confrontation, and move to conclude a new comprehensive agreement that removes as many barriers to trade as possible.”

While the Greens will see us rejoin the customs union “as a first step towards full EU membership, and a way of resolving many of the worst problems resulting from Brexit”.

Brexit has also had an impact on our workforce - particularly in key sectors such as hospitality and agriculture.

Much has also been said of our workforce and a lack of skills entering the jobs market - and there are mounting concerns over the role of apprenticeships and, in particular the Apprenticeship Levy.

It is a tax on employers which is used to fund apprenticeship training. Introduced at the start of the 2017/18 tax year, it is payable by all employers with an annual pay bill of more than £3m.

But since its introduction, the number of apprentices has nosedived. According to findings from the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), the number of apprentices starting in small businesses has plummeted since the introduction of the levy, with 123,800 apprenticeship starts in SMEs in England in 2020/21, compared to 241,000 in 2016/17. That’s a drop of a staggering 49%.

It all feeds into a growing concern about training and development of workers and options open to young people other than going to university and the debt that incurs.

Lizzie Crowley, senior policy adviser at the CIPD, the professional body for HR and people development, said: “Skills and labour shortages continue to be a real problem across the UK and all sectors of the economy, and we need to get apprenticeships and vocational education right if we’re to tackle these challenges.

“Investment in training and development is critical in addressing skill gaps and improving workplace productivity, but the Apprenticeship Levy has failed to reverse the decline in training we’ve seen over the past two decades.”

Graham Razey, chief executive of East Kent Colleges Group - which has sites in Canterbury, Ashford, Folkestone, Sheppey and Broadstairs - shares the concerns. He said: “Whoever ends up forming the next government needs to spend time considering how to solve the challenges around apprenticeships.

“This is the perfect pathway for young people to develop their skills whilst earning money, but there needs to be a mechanism to encourage more businesses to take on apprentices. There are just too few opportunities offered for the many young people we see who’d like to take an apprenticeship pathway.”

Labour says it will “reform the Conservatives’ broken Apprenticeships Levy”, saying the current “rigid rules ignore vital skills and training needed to access apprenticeships.” It vows to create a flexible Growth and Skills Levy, with Skills England consulting on eligible courses to ensure qualifications offer value for money.

The Tories say they will “fund 100,000 high-quality apprenticeships for young people, paid for by curbing the number of poor-quality university degrees that leave young people worse off”.

Ed Davey’s Liberal Democrats will simply “fix the skills and recruitment crisis by investing in education and training, including increasing the availability of apprenticeships”.

Reform UK will up the National Insurance rate to 20% for foreign workers which “could raise more than £20bn over five years to pay for apprenticeships and training for young Brits”.

Just stop the merry-go-round. What everyone wants is a plan

The Greens are rather vague on the topic - not addressing it directly but pointing to various training schemes to support a shift to a greener economy.

But ultimately, whoever wins, it all boils down to one thing everyone in the business world is agreed on - that all-important stability on which industry thrives.

Concludes Tudor Price of the Kent Invicta Chamber: “Just stop the merry-go-round. What everyone wants is a plan. Even if that’s income tax not going to change for however many years or that the same prime minister is going to be in the chair.

“That is the most important thing. Because a lot of companies are talking to investors globally and they're saying at the moment they wouldn't put investment into the UK until things have calmed down a little bit.

“You need to have a stable government and you need to have some of these big infrastructure projects getting the green light - like the Lower Thames Crossing, Gatwick North and Manston Airport, to some extent.

“By doing so, it lays down a foundation of activity over a period of time which then encourages other investors.”

Business may not be the election-winning ticket for all the men and women on the street, but it is absolutely essential to our local economies and the work upon which we all rely. Whoever wins the July 4 poll needs to deliver.