Mettricks Guildhall shut its doors for good on Sunday following what entrepreneur Spencer Bowman described as the hardest decision he has ever had to make. This involved rising rents, business rates, energy bills, staff costs and food and drink inflation making the venue no longer viable. He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service he felt let down and disappointed by the Labour government and Southampton City Council. The cut to business rates announced last month, which comes into effect in April next year, would not apply to Mr Bowman’s operation. His other Mettricks venues in Portswood, Woolston and Westquay are unaffected by the closure of the Guildhall site.