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FSB Reacts to the Queen's Speech |
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), the UK ’s largest business organisation, reacted in detail to the Queen’s Speech that was delivered today in Parliament.
Carol Undy , FSB National Chairman, said: “As usual the speech delivered by Her Majesty contained both good and bad proposals from the Government. We welcome the Government’s commitment to a strong economy and a number of the proposed Bills will directly impact upon business. Small firms employ over 12 million people and the Government will need to keep the interests of our members in mind if it is to protect the economic future of the UK .” Mrs Undy also reacted on specific proposals. On a proposed ‘pay-as-you-go’ transport system: “Our members have told us that they cannot change their journey patterns or times even if they wanted to. A tradesman cannot take his tools and equipment on the bus to get to a customer’s house. Therefore, pay-as-you-go proposals will be seen as another tax on small firms. “This Bill will hold back economic growth amongst the 4.3 million small businesses unless intelligent, locally-based solutions are worked out to prevent only non-essential journeys.” On a proposed pensions bill: “The Pensions Bill will need to be finely balanced. The Government has to safeguard people’s futures but it must not put jobs at risk. Small firms will need longer to implement the proposed pensions changes and will need the proposals to be light on compliance requirements.” On a climate change bill: “Small firms recognise the need to protect the environment. A healthy economy will generate funds that can then be invested in research and development on cleaner ways of working. A blunt instrument such as blanket taxes will not address climate change effectively. We have learnt this from the Climate Change Levy, which is nothing more than a tax that does not change behaviour. More taxes in the same format will simply hold back the UK economy – costing jobs and businesses – while other countries thrive. Businesses understand that economic growth and action to tackle climate concerns can go hand in hand. The Government should use its Climate Change Bill to demonstrate that it will do the same.” On an immigration bill: “It is essential that the Government does not require small firms to act as pseudo-immigration officers. Small businesses do not have the resources to deal with the administration burden of checking who is and who is not a legal worker. With two new EU Member States in 2007 it will be very difficult for small firms to work out whether a Bulgarian or Romanian in the UK is legally entitled to work. The Bill will need to protect our borders with sensible, easy to run procedures. Otherwise it may do more harm than good.” On criminal justice proposals: “The Government’s intention to put the victim at the heart of the criminal justice system must be extended to businesses. At present small firms do not believe that crime against them is taken seriously enough. Small firms have much more to offer in assisting the police on community safety and they should be given a greater opportunity to contribute. The police must tackle crime against business as one of its key priorities.” On education reform: “Many of our members report that school-leavers are not ready for work from day one. Education reform must focus not only on vocational skills but also on providing young people with communication skills and an appreciation for the need to be punctual and well-presented. This will help boost the productivity of UK small businesses.” On proposed changes to local government and the planning system: “Changes to the way local government operates must not include a re-localisation of business rates. Our members remember the bad old days of the 1980s when rates went through the roof in some areas. The current system, where business rates are set at a national level, ensure that they receive enough scrutiny to keep them affordable. National control of business rates must remain. “The current planning system stifles business growth because it takes too long to make decisions and is overly-bureaucratic. Moves to speed this up will be very welcome.” On securing energy supplies: “Our members were hit hard by recent hikes in energy prices. Bringing forth measures to protect them from such rises in the future through the securing of energy supplies is very good news.” |
