SCOTLAND needs a government commission to investigate high street malaise, retail union Usdaw has said, after new figures showed that one in every 10 shops are shuttered.

Industry statistics showed a 4.8 per cent dip in high street footfall last month. Across all Scottish stores, footfall was 2.8 per cent in July — a third successive month of decline. There was a recorded growth of 2.4 per cent in retail parks.

The town centre vacancy rate remained at 9.8 per cent, with one in every 10 shops lying empty.

Usdaw Scotland divisional officer Stewart Forrest said the Scottish government should establish a commission to tackle the decline of high streets. The Tory government at Westminster appointed a panel of retail experts led by shoe repair magnate Sir John Timpson which issued its report in December.

But Mr Forrest criticised the panel for not including a workers’ representative.

“I’d like to see a commission involving all the interested parties and not just employers,” he told the Star.

“These figures are concerning. It’s highlighting the fact that a lot of people in retail are losing their jobs, and there’s a lot of uncertainty in retail.

“Companies like House of Fraser and Debenhams have got a sword of Damocles hanging over them. Usdaw are dealing with job losses at Tesco.”

Mr Forrest said the union wanted to see a “fairer playing field for high street retail” to ensure it could compete with online shopping. This would involve assessing business rates and ensuring that web-based retailers like Amazon were paying their taxes.

In April Usdaw launched its national Save Our Shops campaign and union members have leafleted shoppers to highlight the troubles facing high streets.

“The general public don’t always see the cuts being implemented,” Mr Forrest said. “We’ve got a lot of members who might not be losing their jobs, but they’re having their hours and wages shrink. The general public doesn’t see that because the store is still open.”

The new figures were published today in the monthly Scottish Retail Consortium (SRC) and Springboard Monitor.

SRC director David Lonsdale said: “Ultimately the success of retailers in this fast-changing world will be down to their own ability to evolve and respond positively to the transition in shopping habits.

“Having to contend at the same time with a hodgepodge of government-mandated cost rises, coupled with continued uncertainty over what our future trading relations with the EU will look like, simply makes that all the harder.”