"SME owners at breaking point. Sunak must reassess business rates & tax hikes", comment from Simply Business

Added by Love Business East Midlands | 18 March 2022

UPDATED: 22 March 2022

Alan Thomas, UK CEO at Simply Business, one of the UK’s largest providers of small business insurance, comments ahead of the 2022 Spring Budget:

“Ahead of the Spring Budget, small business owners are at breaking point – feeling the crippling pressure of rising costs as energy and fuel prices reach record levels.

“For SMEs across the UK, these challenges are acute with their impact coming at a time when they're still recovering from the effects of Covid-19. Coupled with widespread staff shortages, cost of materials and ongoing supply chain issues, it’s an increasingly difficult landscape for SMEs. So it's vital the Chancellor is bold and decisive in his Spring Budget to brighten the outlook for millions of British small businesses.

“Losing an eye-watering £127bn in total so far – equating to over £22,500 each – it should not be forgotten that small business owners have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Yet their importance to our economy is undeniable, accounting for 99% of all British businesses and contributing trillions of pounds a year in turnover.

“At Simply Business, we're calling on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to place small businesses at the heart of his Spring Budget. Reassessing business rates and reviewing tax hikes would be a welcome start. Retailers that had seen a reduction in business rates are expecting it to rise again from 31 March. What's more, hospitality businesses who had seen VAT reduce are expecting it to rise again. These tax changes will directly hit the pockets of small business owners and it's therefore no surprise that a recent YouGov study showed 79% are against this move.

“The Chancellor can demonstrate his support and act for the sake of nearly six million UK small businesses. Put simply, the government must ease the pressure on struggling self-employed people so they can help our communities - and economy at large - bounce back.”

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