Small businesses want a fairer deal
Posted 8 March 2007 at 11:02AM by Simon Dickson in Investment and finance
The Treasury has announced that Gordon Brown will present (presumably?) his last Budget on Wednesday 21 March. To ensure that the interests of smaller businesses aren't forgotten, the Federation of Small Businesses has produced an 11-page submission which seeks to 'better inform the Chancellor on how he can continue economic growth through effective assistance to small employers and the self-employed.'
There's a particular focus on employment legislation which, the FSB says, is putting businesses off employing people: a third of its members reckon it's 'too much of a risk' to employ someone. Although they recognise the need for a decent work-life balance, they say: 'Fairness to employees is increasingly being advanced to the detriment of business needs and flexibility.'
The organisation's national chairman, Carol Undy, thinks a lot remains to be done, despite Gordon Brown's ten years in the job. 'The majority of private sector jobs are in small businesses,' she notes, 'and they are waiting for action from the Chancellor following his frequent warm words about entrepreneurship.'
'It is widely anticipated that this will be Gordon Brown's last Budget. The FSB believes that it must also be his best Budget.'
You can download the full submission from the FSB's website; it's surprisingly easy to read for a document intended to influence national macroeconomic policy. We'll all see what effect it has on the 21st; full details of the Budget will be published on the Treasury's website.
Tags: budget, fsb, gordon brown, treasury
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