Giving his initial reaction to the Chancellor’s Budget,
Dr Adam Marshall, Director General of the British Chambers of
Commerce (BCC), said:
“Businesses had been advised to expect minimal change, rather
than a blockbuster Budget, and did not disappoint.
“Short-term support for firms hardest-hit by business rates rises
will be welcomed, along with commitments to technical education,
digital connectivity, easier R&D tax credits, and a one-year
delay to digital tax reporting for the very smallest firms.
Conversely, hikes to dividend taxes and national insurance for
the self-employed will be viewed far less positively by
entrepreneurs.
“While businesspeople appreciate a steady hand on the tiller, the
government is sending mixed signals by holding investment largely
steady at precisely the time that it is exhorting British
businesses to double down. More needs to be done in the coming
months to improve infrastructure and encourage lagging business
investment to ensure the UK is Brexit-ready.”
On Business Rates, the top campaign priority for Chambers
of Commerce at the Spring Budget, Marshall said:
“The business communities hardest-hit by this year’s business
rates revaluation will breathe a little easier thanks to the
Chancellor’s decision to offer a package of transitional
reliefs.
“We now challenge councils across England to use every penny of
the new funding announced by the Chancellor to offer relief to
the hardest-hit businesses in their areas, without excuses and
without delay.
“However welcome, measures that mitigate the short-term impact of
business rate rises are little more than a sticking plaster. The
radical changes needed to improve the broken business rates
system will have to wait for another day. The campaign for
radical reform – and an end to punishing levels of business
property tax to ensure the Treasury raises enough to fund local
services – continues.”
