Greater Birmingham Chambers gives full reaction to Chancellor’s Autumn Statement

Added by Love Business East Midlands | 25 November 2016

UPDATED: 8 December 2016

Giving his full reaction to the Autumn Statement, Chris Plant, Director at the Chamber, said:

“Philip Hammond has delivered a responsible, solid and focused package that will reassure both business and markets. 

“Increased resources for local and regional transport infrastructure, broadband, housing and innovation will boost business confidence at a critical moment. The Chancellor's strong focus on the growth requirements of our cities, regions and nations will not go unnoticed in business communities across the UK. 

“While business communities would have liked Philip Hammond to go even further to support growth, they will recognise that his hands are somewhat tied by lower tax receipts and sharply higher borrowing forecasts. The fact that he chose to commit significant new resources to support growth and productivity demonstrates welcome flexibility during a period of uncertainty and change. 

“There was very little support in our business communities for further cuts to Corporation Tax, so Philip Hammond was right to stick with existing plans. However, we would have liked to see more action on the high up-front taxes and costs of doing business in the UK, particularly business rates. 

“The government's decision to move to a single annual set of tax and spending commitments will be welcomed by businesses weary of frequent and sometimes unclear changes of direction.”

Tax Measures

On business rates, Chris Plant said:

“For rural businesses and those benefitting from the lower cap on annual increases following this year’s revaluation, the measures announced are welcome. However, British businesses will continue to pay the highest local property taxes in the developed world. Addressing this upfront burden is essential if they are to invest more in training, recruitment and growth plans – all essential to closing the ‘productivity gap’. Bringing forward the planned switch to CPI for up-rating from 2020 to 2017 would have helped and an opportunity to do this was missed.”

On fuel duty:

“The continued freeze is positive news for businesses, particularly amongst smaller firms and the self-employed, for whom transport and distribution costs account for a significant proportion of their cost base.”

On Insurance Premium Tax:

“Businesses across the UK will be disappointed by a further rise in the Insurance Premium Tax. This is yet another stealth tax on businesses, and increases the upfront cost of a critical safety net for firms.”

On road and rail infrastructure investment:

“We are pleased that business calls for action on infrastructure have made an impact. It is now critical for these upgrades to begin without delay, as they are crucial not just to business confidence, but also to local and national growth prospects. 

“Transport improvements have positive knock-on effects, as they open up supply chains, generate thousands of new contracts for UK businesses, as well as enhance access to labour and new markets. 

“While we want to see ‘quick start’ projects delivered, we also need a long-term outlook. For that reason, business wants the government and the National Infrastructure Commission to plan for the delivery of major projects that can help prepare the economy for the future.”

On export support:

“We welcome the announcement of additional finance and insurance support by UK Export Finance, which should provide valuable help to UK exporters. However, this is not sufficient to improve our ambition to get more businesses to export – and increased direct support such as enabling businesses to attend trade missions, trade fairs, commission market research or make themselves export ready would have been an important additional boost to companies.”

Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce will be exhibiting at the Love Business Expo at Stand E10 in the Small Business Zone on the 16th February 2017 at Donington Park

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