Co-op to keep £66m in rates relief despite 400% rise in profits

Group will repay UK government £15.5m worth of furlough payments as profits surge to £127m The Co-operative group is to repay £15.5m in furlough payments to the government, but will hold on to more than £66m in business rates relief despite announcing a surge in profits during the pandemic. The mutual, which owns hundreds of grocery stores as well as funeral parlours, legal and insurance services, said pretax profits jumped from £24m to £127m in the year to 2 January. Read full story