FURLOUGH EXTENSION AND VAT REDUCTION: EAST MIDLANDS FIRMS’ BUDGET WISHLIST REVEALED

Added by Love Business East Midlands | 2 March 2021

East Midlands SMEs are calling on the Chancellor to announce an extension to the furlough scheme when he delivers his Budget tomorrow, according to the latest data from Lloyds Bank’s Business Barometer research.

 

When asked which initiative would be most beneficial to helping their firm trade this year, more than a quarter (26%) of SMEs in the East Midlands said an extension to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme or the introduction of a new scheme to help them retain employees.

More than a fifth (22%) said they hoped a cut in the VAT rate would be included in the package of measures announced by the Chancellor Rishi Sunak, while around one in ten (11%) said they would be keen for him to focus on growth initiatives such as staff training grants or business investment tax relief.

Although more than half (53%) of those polled said they were either ‘very’ or ‘fairly’ optimistic that their firm could trade solvently through 2021 without the support of Government schemes, one in ten (11%) were ‘not very’ optimistic. A quarter (25%) were undecided, saying they were neither confident nor not confident.

The research also revealed the COVID-19 support measures that East Midlands businesses had already made use of during the past year. Two-fifths (41%) had used the furlough scheme, while around one-fifth (18%) had benefitted from business rates relief.  One in seven (14%) had also taken advantage of the government’s Eat Out to Help Out scheme.

Notably, a third of respondents (33%) said their business had not needed to access any of the Government’s COVID-19 support schemes so far.

Amanda Dorel, regional director for the East Midlands at Lloyds Bank Commercial Banking, said:

“SMEs in the East Midlands are starting to look ahead following the Prime Minister’s roadmap out of lockdown announced last week. While this has certainly been a challenging time for local firms, government schemes have helped many of the region’s businesses, and some are clearly looking to the Chancellor for additional support as they reopen in the coming months.

“Whatever comes out in tomorrow’s budget, we will remain by the side of businesses in the East Midlands to provide the financial support and guidance they need to look ahead with confidence.”

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