Research carried out by the Country Land and Business Association has shown that thousands of shops, pubs and other small businesses in rural areas have shut down across the country in the last year.

The CLA say North Yorkshire is one of the worst affected areas, with over 4,100 shops, warehouses and offices vacant.

The data also revealed that more pubs had closed than opened in rural areas, with East Riding having lost 25 in the last three years, compared to nine new openings in that time. 

Speaking in the report, Victoria Vyvyan, CLA President, said: “The shops are shutting, pubs are vanishing, and buses are no longer coming. Give it time, and communities will go too.

“When local businesses fold, they don’t just take jobs with them. They take prosperity, identity, quiet bonds that hold a place together.”

In their report, the association warns that government tax hikes are making it increasingly difficult for rural businesses to survive.

Henk Geertsema, Communications Manager for the North CLA, says that the challenges also stem in part from difficulties implementing national policies in remote areas.

He said: “The trends are ever changing – the fate of the rural economy is to a large extent determined by the intersection of central government policy and local authority delivery. 

“Rural areas are different as it covers vast geographic areas that are sparsely populated, whereas urban areas are more condensed in terms of developments and populations. Think about policing – it is far more challenging to patrol a vast geographic area, than a city area. The same principle applies to infrastructure such as digital connectivity and transport.”

The CLA say that if passed, the Devolution Bill could benefit rural communities by handing power from the central government to local authorities made up of the community who know their area best.

The bill, which was originally announced on July 10 this year, is currently making its way through the House of Commons after having completed its second reading stage.

Mr Geertsema said: “The CLA has long argued for narrowing the gap between urban and rural economies. 

“Local authorities that are largely rural, like North Yorkshire,  generally are better at understanding rural issues.”

Rural communities continue to see a heightened number of ‘vital services’ like bus routes being scrapped, with seven councils mentioned in the report all declaring a number of bus routes had been stopped in recent years.

The CLA put forward a six point plan in an attempt to address the issues rural businesses face, and to call for greater steps from the government to be able to effectively support them.

This included calling on more to be done about tackling rural crime, as well as  investment in the countryside’s infrastructure, particularly in regards to adequate public transport.

Mr Geertsema warns that if action is not taken up quickly, it will prove detrimental for rural businesses.

He said: “It would lead to a continuing spiral of decline in our rural areas.”